


Unexpected

by Drakaina_amore64



Category: DreamWorks Dragons (Cartoon), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Background Dagret, Background Heather/Fishlegs/Ruffnut, Discussion of Abortion, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Friends to Lovers, One Night Stand, One night stand to friends, Polyamory, Slow Burn, Swearing, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:15:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27774397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drakaina_amore64/pseuds/Drakaina_amore64
Summary: Astrid Hofferson is healing from a bad breakup and isn't interested in dating anyone, but then Hiccup Haddock comes into her life and the unexpected happens.
Relationships: Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Astrid Hofferson
Comments: 54
Kudos: 77





	1. Mutual attraction

**Author's Note:**

> So I had this idea for a while and only just got around to writing it. Hiccup and Astrid are around 22 in this fic, in case anyone was wondering :).

“This is the last of them,” Astrid said, placing the moving box down with the others and wiping her sweaty brow. Heather glanced up from where she was unpacking a box of DVD’s and gave a sigh of relief. 

“Finally! I was beginning to think you were becoming a hoarder,” Heather teased. Astrid rolled her eyes at her friend and pushed a box over to the new kitchen. After living at Heather’s for the last six months following a bad breakup with her ex, she had been lucky to get this one bedroom apartment, especially in such a good area. The bonus was that it was not too far from the gym where she worked so she could walk there and back instead of driving and struggling to find a carpark in the morning. 

“Watch yourselves!” Came a gruff voice in the doorway and both Heather and Astrid looked up to see Dagur and Eret entering with the sofa. They placed the couch down in the living room area and both stretched their backs. Dagur was Heather’s older brother, and also Astrid’s co-worker at the gym. Eret, was Dagur’s long time boyfriend and had become one of Astrid’s close friends. They had all been kind enough to offer to help her move into the apartment and pick up her new furniture from the store. 

“Thanks so much guys!” Astrid said, grabbing a few glasses out so they could all have a drink of water. She had brought a bottle of vodka earlier to share after they had finally moved all the furniture and boxes and was eager to have a drink herself, especially since she hadn’t been able to have one for a week. This was the downside of taking antibiotics to help clear the ear infection that had tortured her for the last two weeks. But now that the infection was all cleared up and she had finished the dose of antibiotics, it was time to make up for it. But first, getting hydrated was more important. 

“Oh legend!” Eret said, taking the glass that Astrid had just poured. Dagur pouted as he held his hand out for a sip and Eret just shook his head and gulped the whole thing in five seconds. 

“No fair!” Dagur cried, causing them all to laugh. 

“Here,” Astrid said, passing another glass over to him. Dagur took it gratefully, huffing at Eret as he went to sit next to Heather on the new couch. Eret laughed and slumped down next to him, throwing an arm around his shoulders, and kissing the top of his head.

“Sorry babe,” he chuckled.

Astrid brought two more drinks over and passed Heather one, before perching on the armrest of the couch to sip at hers. 

“Hey, I forgot to mention, but a new guy at work was talking about some new club called Defenders - you guys interested in going tonight?” Eret asked, cheerfully. Dagur and Heather nodded with enthusiasm, and looked over to Astrid who was chewing her lip in thought. 

“Come on Astrid, it will be fun!” Heather said, giving her leg a shake. “Besides, we need to get you laid or something, it’s been a while.” 

Astrid flushed with embarrassment as the two boys guffawed into their drinks. Having sex was the last thing on her mind these days, especially after such a bad breakup. It had almost been enough to put her off dating for good. But going to a club did sound fun, especially since she had spent the last week moping about Heather’s house with a sore ear while packing up her things. 

“I’m in,” she answered, grinning as they all fist pumped. “I better go unpack my hair brush and some clothes then.” 

The boys left to go and get ready at their own place leaving Heather to help Astrid pick something out. Heather had said that she would get changed closer to the time, since her house was on the way. 

It took some time to find the boxes with all Astrid’s clothes but finally they found it, ripping them open to reveal the various black, blue and red garments inside. Astrid rummaged through the clothes, unsure of what she felt like wearing. She wasn’t normally the dress type but since this was supposed to be a fancy club, she was willing to make an exception for tonight. A tight, short red dress caught her eye and she pulled it out, holding it up to inspect it. It was decent enough and would go well with the black leather jacket she was planning on wearing. 

“I’m just going to have a quick shower,” she told Heather, who was busy trying to programme the channels on the TV. Astrid went into the bathroom and turned the shower on, quickly throwing the clothes she was going to be wearing on the floor and stripping out of the old ones. The shower was heavenly on her aching muscles that served as a reminder from carrying all those heavy boxes earlier. She had almost considered cancelling her plans and just sitting in the shower the whole night but finally managed to turn it off. Only then did she realise that she hadn’t even unpacked a towel to dry off with. 

“Dammit!” Astrid growled, pulling the bathroom door ajar, “Heather, can you please grab me a towel?” 

“Sure, which box are they in?” Heather called back.

“Ahhh, I think I opened it earlier when I was looking for the clothes, it’s by the coffee table.”

Heather came down the hall with a towel in her hand and passed it through the crack, just enough for Astrid to pull it through. 

“Thanks,” Astrid said, quickly drying herself. 

“No problem,” Heather replied behind the door. “Have you decided what you are going to do with your hair?”

“Probably some sort of braid, or even a half up, half down.”

Heather murmured her approval and left to go back to the lounge, leaving Astrid to finish getting ready. She pulled on the red dress, smoothing it with her hands to try and get rid of the wrinkles that were a result from sitting in the box. It was plain, but she could dress it up with a nice necklace or something, after all, she wasn’t going out to impress anyone. It was solely to have fun with her friends and that was it. The dress did hug her curves in all the right places though, allowing just a peek of cleavage and short enough to expose her toned legs. She pulled on the leather jacket, helping her feel less bare and at least would offer warmth if the weather happened to change. 

Taking the brush that she had unpacked, Astrid then began to attack the knots in her blonde hair, wincing when it caught on a few. She hadn’t unpacked her hair straighteners or any hair products so it was less tidy than how she normally had it, but it would do. Using skilled fingers, Astrid braided a section of her hair at the back and let the rest fall in soft waves around her shoulders. She then picked out some strappy black, high heels to go with the rest of the outfit and pulled them on, straightening to view her reflection in the mirror. 

Satisfied, she sprayed some perfume around her body and exited the bathroom. Heather was waiting on the couch and let out a wolf whistle when she entered the room. 

“Damn! You are looking hot! I might need to get a spray bottle or something in case I have to fend off a crowd tonight,” Heather joked and shifted so Astrid could sit next to her. 

“As if,” Astrid laughed, taking out her phone to check if there was a text from Dagur or Eret and seeing there was. 

_Be there in five, you guys ready?_ The text from Eret said. 

**Yep, I’m all ready. We still need to stop by Heather’s.**

_Sweet, we’ll text when we are outside. The club is only a few corners away from Heather’s anyway._

“They’ll be here soon,” Astrid told Heather who looked up from her own phone and nodded. They decided to have a glass of the vodka while they waited and had a race to see who could finish it the fastest. Astrid won mainly because Heather had started laughing at her relief of finally getting that drink she had been craving. 

Within a few minutes, Astrid received the text to say that the boys were waiting in the carpark so they grabbed their things and locked the door after them. Heather climbed in the back of Eret’s Ford F150 Raptor and Astrid hoisted herself in after, buckling the seatbelt up as he backed it out of the car park. 

“Looking good, Astrid,” Dagur commented, turning around to look at her. “I take it you changed your mind about getting laid?” 

The others laughed as Astrid kicked the back of his seat. “No, that’s not why I am going tonight. I want to have a good time, that’s it.”

“We’re only teasing you, Astrid,” Eret chuckled as he came to a stop sign. “Honestly, after what you have been through, no one would blame you for not wanting to rush things like that.” 

The others murmured their agreement and they fell into another discussion about what this new club would be like, until finally they arrived at Heather’s house. 

“Do you want some help choosing something?” Astrid asked her as she leapt out of the truck. 

“Nah, I’ll be super quick.” 

“Hurry up,” Dagur called out after her and Heather put up her middle finger in response while unlocking the front door. Dagur sniggered and turned back around to Astrid. 

“So how are you feeling about living by yourself now?” 

“Not too bad, I mean it is a great place and it’s affordable. I doubt I will get lonely,” Astrid answered, deep in thought. While living with Heather had been great short term, Astrid was someone who liked her own space, and that was hard to have when living in a house with two other people. Heather’s flatmate, Cami was okay, but sometimes Astrid felt like she was annoyed with her being there. 

Heather was true to her word and ended up only taking fifteen minutes to quickly throw on a black dress and tidy up her hair in a side, french braid. She climbed back into the truck and Eret reversed out of the driveway. They had already discussed that Eret would be sober driving so that way they wouldn’t need to call an uber as he could drop them home. 

Eret managed to find a park a block away from the club which meant they had to walk the rest of the way, but that didn’t bother them. What did bother them was the large queue of at least fifty people waiting to get into the venue.

“What the hell, it will take ages for us to get into that place,” Dagur grumbled as they crossed the road. 

“It won’t take that long, let’s just go line up,” Heather said, leading the way to the back of the queue. A voice then called out Eret’s name and they all spun around to see a guy around their age, waving out from the queue. He was tall and wiry, with scruffy auburn hair and emerald green eyes. Astrid noticed he was wearing a green shirt with a brown bomber jacket and dark jeans. 

“That’s my new friend from work, come on guys,” Eret said, beckoning for them to follow him. Astrid looked at the group of people warily, there were five of them, all of whom looked around her and Heather’s age. Eret held out his hand to give the guy a quick handshake and then introduced Dagur as his boyfriend. He then gestured to her and Heather who were standing awkwardly behind them. 

“This is Heather, Dagur’s sister and her best friend, Astrid,” Eret said to the young man with the scruffy auburn hair and emerald green eyes. “Girls, this is my work mate, Hamish Haddock, but he goes by Hiccup.”

“Hiccup,” Heather and Astrid said in unison and the man gave them a sheepish look. 

“Yeah, I always used to get hiccups as a kid and then my parents just started calling me it, guess the name just stuck over the years.”

They both nodded, shaking his hand and Astrid felt a blush rise in her cheeks when he boldly eyed her up and down. 

“These are my friends, Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Tuffnut and my cousin Snotlout,” he said, gesturing to the other four beside him. They all exchanged handshakes and friendly smiles, and Astrid soon felt a bit more relaxed about being around these people she didn’t really know. 

“Hey, why don’t you guys just come stand with us, save you all standing at the end of the queue,” Hiccup whispered, making room for them to slip under the rope. Eret slid under first and held it up for the rest of them while others in the queue began to shout out in anger. 

“Hey! What the hell! You can’t cut the line like that, that’s not fair!” A woman yelled out, throwing her hands up. Astrid turned towards her, a scowl spread across her features as she challenged the woman to say something further. Before she could, one of the bouncers who had been standing at the main entrance had come down to see what the commotion was. 

“Is there a problem here?” he asked, in a smooth voice. Astrid quickly shook her head, turning back to face the front, hoping that he would buy it and not kick them out.

“Throk! Good to see you, man,” Hiccup said with enthusiasm and the bouncer’s face lit up in recognition.

“Hiccup Haddock! Long time no see, I’m glad you are here. Mala will be thrilled you came for the opening weekend.” The man said, pulling him into a bone crushing hug. 

“Oh, I definitely wouldn’t miss it for the world! I know how much effort you guys put into this place.”

Throk grinned and then unclipped one of the ropes, urging them all to come through and follow him. Astrid found herself walking alongside Hiccup as Throk led them to the front of the queue, ignoring the shouts of protest from all around them. 

“VIP, bitches!” Ruffnut yelled back, causing a string of insults to be hurled at them in response. 

“Do you all have your I.D?” Throk asked, and Astrid quickly got hers out and passed it to him. He looked between her and the photo on the card before handing it back and taking Heather’s. The music inside the club was thumping loudly, and when the doors opened, they all gasped in amazement. The entire club almost resembled the inside of a volcano, with its fiery colour scheme and walls that looked like molten rock. A giant statue of a dragon was situated at the front of the dance floor where the D.J station was. 

“This place is amazing!” Heather yelled over the loud music. Astrid nodded in agreement, looping her arm through hers to ensure they stayed together. Hiccup pointed to a vacant booth and they all quickly piled into it, squishing against each other so they could all fit. 

“Anyone want drinks, my shout?” Hiccup asked them. 

“Ooo, I might try the Berserker cocktail,” Heather said, looking at the chalkboard board behind the bar. Dagur and Eret ordered the same while Fishlegs and Snotlout went with a beer and the twins chose the Hideous Zippleback cocktail.

“What about you, milady?” Hiccup asked, and Astrid realised that he was talking directly to her. Her cheeks flushed as he stood there, waiting for her answer and for a moment she forgot how to speak. 

“Ah, I might go with the Berserker as well, please.”

Hiccup nodded, and took his wallet out to head to the bar. Astrid wasn’t sure why but she stood up and followed him, ignoring the surprised look Heather gave her. 

“Need some help?” She asked and he gave her a grateful smile. 

“Thanks, I was just debating how I was going to be able to carry all those drinks back to the table.”

Astrid laughed as they approached the bar, both leaning against the counter while they waited for the bartender to serve them. 

“So you just started at Eret’s work, right?” Astrid questioned, taking a peanut from the bowl in front of her. 

“Yep, I just moved here and the owner, Gobber is actually my Godfather so he offered me the job to help me out,” Hiccup replied. 

“Oh nice, I don’t think I’ve ever met him before, but Eret says he’s really good to him.”

Hiccup smiled. “He is, in fact I am probably closer to him than my actual father. And he knew it would be hard for me to get a job because of my leg.”

Astrid raised an eyebrow in curiosity. “What happened to your leg?”

Hiccup straightened up and pulled the left side of his pant leg up to reveal a prosthetic. 

Astrid gasped and was about to ask him how it happened but then the bartender appeared, ready to take their order. Hiccup ordered the drinks and they waited there awkwardly, both unsure of what to say next. The berserker drinks were placed in front of her and her eyes widened at the sparklers that were sitting in the glass. 

“Wow, these drinks are so much cooler than those little paper umbrellas you usually get,” Astrid commented, inspecting the glass in amazement. 

“Yep, trust Mala and Throk to go all out,” Hiccup answered, picking up the rest of the glasses. Astrid juggled the rest of them and they returned to the group who appeared to be getting along well, all of them talking and joking about. Astrid passed Heather and Dagur their drinks and sat back down, shuffling over so that Hiccup could slide in next to her. She tried not to focus on the warmth of his body that was pressed against her side, or the way he laughed...or the small scar on his chin. Heather nudged her, eyebrows raised when Astrid turned to look at her in surprise.

“You’re being obvious,” she whispered in her ear. Astrid pulled back in alarm and gave her a bewildered look. Heather just rolled her eyes in exasperation and leant forward to whisper, “You are pretty much eye fucking, Hiccup.”

Astrid rolled her eyes. “I am not, don’t be silly. I mean he seems like a nice guy and all but no.” 

“Hmm sure, sure,” Heather replied, taking the straw between her teeth and grinning. 

Astrid huffed, and took a sip of her own drink. She was definitely not checking him out, he wasn’t even her type, or maybe he was and she just didn’t know it yet. Shaking her head to clear the conflicting thoughts, Astrid moved to get up and go to the bathroom. She tapped Hiccup on the shoulder to warn him since he was engrossed in a conversation with Eret and Dagur and he quickly shifted his legs so she could squeeze past him. His eyes followed her in curiosity as she walked away and then he resumed the conversation, his laughter drowned by the music. 

Luckily, it didn’t take long for her to find the bathroom and she was quickly in and out, weaving back through the crowd on the dance floor. Upon returning to the table, she noticed that most of the group had left to go and dance and the only two that were seated there were Hiccup and Snotlout. She swallowed and went to sit back down when Snotlout reached over to get her attention. 

“Hey babe, it’s your lucky day because the Snotman is free to be your dance partner for the night?” He said, waggling his eyebrows. Astrid cringed, looking at Hiccup who gave her an apologetic look and shrugged his shoulders. 

“Thanks but uh, I already promised Hiccup a dance,” Astrid said and grabbed Hiccup’s hand, pulling him upwards. Hiccup looked shocked for a moment but went along with it, letting her lead him to the dance floor. Astrid kept her hand in his as they entered the sea of dancers; she could see Heather dancing with Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Fishlegs nearby and Dagur and Eret were dancing together on the other side of the dance floor. She found an empty spot on the floor and turned to loop her arms around his neck, feeling his hands come to rest on her hips as they began to sway to the music. He certainly wasn’t a bad dancer and it wasn’t long before they were both giggling like mad as the effects of the alcohol began to kick in. 

Astrid found she really liked Hiccup, he wasn’t like the usual cocky guys who hit on her, instead he was gentle, sweet and also a wee bit sassy. In between dancing, they would sit at the booth to have another drink and talk while their friends still danced, completely oblivious to what was going on between them . The conversations started with questions about interests, and likes and dislikes, until it eventually escalated into harmless flirting. 

By the fifth berserker cocktail, Astrid was definitely starting to feel more than tipsy and it appeared Hiccup was the same. The flirting intensified from playful shoves to lingering touches, their hands roaming over the other as they grinded on the dance floor. They moved in sync while dancing, bodys pressed against each other in desperation with each short, ragged breath. Hiccup leant his forehead down onto Astrid’s, his breath hot as it mingled with her own until the breath became one, their lips meeting in a passionate but slow kiss. 

But Astrid found she needed more, and deepened the kiss, her tongue demanding entrance into his. Hiccup obliged immediately, pulling her closer while his own tongue met hers. They pulled away, breathless and panting when the song Back to my Bed by Elderbrook and Sam Feldt began playing. The people around them were still dancing but all they saw was each other as they gazed into one another's eyes. 

Before Astrid could stop herself, she pulled him down slightly to whisper in his ear. “Wanna get out of here?” 

  
  



	2. Between the sheets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up but this chapter is pretty smutty.

Astrid quickly told Heather that she was going with Hiccup, ignoring the raven haired girl’s knowing smirk as she followed Hiccup out of the club. The alcohol was clearly affecting both their motor ability, but they managed to stumble along the path to find a waiting Uber parked nearby. Hiccup held the door open for her and she tumbled into the back seat with a giggle, him joining her not a second later. The driver asked where she was taking them and Astrid gave her address, snuggling close to Hiccup as the car pulled away from the curb.

The trip took longer than what Astrid’s current patience was able to handle and she pulled Hiccup into a sloppy kiss, grinning against his mouth. He quickly reciprocated the kiss, cupping her face with one hand while the other moved to her waist. The Uber driver cleared her throat and turned around to face them when they were stopped at a red light. 

“Uh, guys? As much as I don’t want to be a cock block, I don’t have leather seats and I’m a bit nervous as to where this could be heading,” she told them, awkwardly. Astrid and Hiccup just smirked at each other, trying to hold back from laughing as their hands entwined. The lights then turned green and the car accelerated forward, getting them one step closer to their destination. 

The Uber driver pulled into the carpark of Astrid’s apartment block and she quickly paid the bill, pushing Hiccup’s wallet out of the way when he offered to cover it. She dragged him out of the car and they clambered up the stairs until they reached her front door. It was almost a miracle that Astrid could direct her key into the keyhole considering she could barely stand up straight, it also didn’t help that Hiccup was kissing her neck, muttering sweet nonsense that her drunk mind could barely comprehend. She finally managed to unlock the door and they stumbled inside, lips connecting before the door even closed. Her bag was dropped to the ground along with her keys and jacket as they headed towards the room, almost tripping over the moving boxes that were still scattered everywhere. They made it to her room and fell onto the bed, mouths still attached in a frenzied kiss as Hiccup shed his own jacket and threw it behind him . 

Hiccup pulled away, panting and observing her carefully, as though he was looking for any sign of hesitation. 

“I need to double check, but are you sure you want this?” He asked, eyes filled with desire but caution. Astrid nodded, giving him a reassuring smile as she rubbed her leg up against his. 

“I do, I want this. Do you?” 

Hiccup laughed, “Oh believe me, I want this. I just wanted to make sure you do.” 

He leaned back down to kiss her, this time a bit slower and more calculated as his hand fell to her hip. The hand then moved to pull at the hem of her dress, lifting it up until it found the silky fabric of her underwear. Astrid moaned when his fingers brushed her damp centre through the thin fabric, and she couldn’t help but push into it, desperate for more. This seemed to spur Hiccup on as he moved the fabric to the side, fingers grazing her slit. She gasped and clutched at his shirt, kissing him harder as pleasure jolted through her with every stroke of his fingers. 

She almost whined when he pulled away, but then saw that he only did so to remove his shirt and undo the button to his pants. Her eyes wandered down to the very noticeable bulge there, indicating that he was as aroused as she was. 

Lifting herself onto her knees, Astrid then scooted over and looped a finger through one of the belt holes, pulling him towards her. Hiccup quickly caught on to her intentions and tugged the pants down, kicking them off awkwardly and stood before her in his boxers. If Astrid wasn’t completely drunk, she might have commented on the superhero themed underwear but all she wanted was  _ him.  _

She pulled his boxers down to free his cock and grasped the throbbing flesh in one hand, carefully stroking it. He was long but narrow in girth, much bigger than she had ever experienced personally and it was probably a good thing that she was too drunk to be nervous about it. 

Hiccup placed a hand on her shoulder, gently squeezing as she pleased him with her hand. 

“That feels amazing, Astrid,” he moaned as his head fell back. When her mouth engulfed him, these moans increased in volume and his hand clutched her shoulder in a tight grip. Astrid smirked around his length, enjoying the sounds of pleasure that came from above and proceeded to lick around his frenulum. Hiccup thrust slowly into her mouth, and Astrid took more of it in, feeling it hit the back of her throat. She didn’t panic though, just relaxed the muscles in her throat while he relished the feeling of being deep inside her mouth. She pulled back to resume her rhythmic sucking and heard him warn that he was about to cum. 

He threw his head back when he did, hand holding the back of her head and letting out the filthiest sounding groan that Astrid had ever heard in her life. She swallowed and released her hold to wipe at her mouth where the excess had dribbled out. 

“Oh, oh my god, that was mind blowing!” Hiccup breathed, running a hand through his hair. Astrid just grinned, grabbing the hem of her dress and lifting it up and over to join the clothes on the floor. Hiccup’s eyes widened as they took her in, and she moved closer - giving him an invitation to proceed.

He knelt on the bed, arms out to pull her into an embrace, his lips searching for hers. He didn’t seem to mind the taste of himself on her tongue, or maybe it was the drunken state that had him not caring. His calloused hands explored her body, every dip and curve as though she was some fantastic masterpiece that deserved all the attention in the world. 

Her dark blue bra ended up being unhooked and thrown somewhere as Hiccup’s hands cupped her bare breasts, mouth latching on to the rosy buds and sucking vigorously. The sensation caused Astrid to almost lose her balance but Hiccup put a hand behind her head and lowered her to the mattress. He hovered over her for a moment before moving downwards, kissing her toned stomach before reaching the dark blue, silky underwear and hooking his fingers underneath. Even with her eyes closed, she knew he would be asking her permission when his hands stilled and quickly nodded to give it. The fingers curled, pulling the fabric down her legs, until they joined the ever growing pile of clothes on the floor. 

Astrid lay before him, completely bare as he took all of her in. She was thankful that she had shaved in the shower earlier, even if it had been for her own benefit. Hiccup appeared to be thankful as well when he made a sound of appreciation and brought his hand to dip between her legs again, fingers parting the warm folds to reach her slit. Astrid bit her lip as his fingers glided up and down, feeling how wet and wanting she was. Hiccup smiled at her before lowering his head down to replace his hand and she threw her head back, waiting with anticipation for his next move. She felt him start with little teasing, flicks of his tongue before tracing it in patterns around her clit. 

“Oh,  _ fuck,”  _ Astrid cried, letting out a choked gasp as she reached out to clutch at the sheets, grinding down on his face. His beard stubble scraped at her sensitive bits as he continued to devour her, pressing his tongue, flat and hard around her clit. Had she been sober, Astrid probably would have found herself more embarrassed about the noises she was making, but it just felt too damn good not to vocalise the pleasure. Hiccup added his fingers back in, and slid them inside of her to pump them in and out while his tongue lavished her clit. Astrid started squirming around, eyes squeezed shut with euphoria. Hiccup ended up having to use his free hand to hold her hips down while his tongue circled around the tiny bundle of nerves, drawing it between his lips and sucking. The warmness that had been brewing inside Astrid’s core finally exploded, radiating throughout her whole body and causing her to spasm and shake in ecstasy. Hiccup just lapped at her entrance, tasting the result of his efforts as she came down from her high. 

“Oh, my gods,” she panted, releasing the sheets as he came up to hover over her again. 

“Good?” he asked, and Astrid nodded, reaching up to pull him back down into a hungry kiss which he returned eagerly. 

“I want you,” she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear. Hiccup smiled and pulled away to retrieve something from his pants, coming back with a condom and ripping it open with his teeth before sliding it down his length. Astrid watched with half- lidded eyes, and moved so he could fit between her legs, breath hitching when he brought his cock to her entrance. He was bigger than what she was accustomed to, but it didn’t hurt when he pushed in, the wetness helping him glide forwards until he was deep inside her. He started his thrusts slow, and deliberate, low, rough grunts falling from his mouth as she rocked her hips to meet his. 

Hiccup picked up the pace, finding the perfect rhythm and increasing the force of his thrusts, causing Astrid to clutch at his forearms, fingernails digging into the skin there. The sensation was causing shock waves of pleasure to run through every nerve of her body and she couldn’t help but desperately beg for more. He was happy to oblige, leaning down to suck at a sensitive spot at her neck as he fucked her harder and deeper. The warmth inside Astrid’s core was already starting to rebuild in pressure, indicating another impending climax. Before it could, Hiccup slowed his movements, looking up from her collarbone with a confused look.

“Hang on - I think it’s -.” 

Astrid snapped her hips up to meet his, causing the confused look on Hiccup’s face to vanish as he increased his pace again, slamming into her and rubbing against that sweet spot over and over. Astrid coiled her legs around his hips, interlocking her ankles as her fingernails scrapped at his shoulders, desperate for that second release. 

When this orgasm hit, it was much more intense than the first and she clenched around him, sparking his own release. For a moment, Astrid floated in a realm all of her own, back arching as her whole body shook with the force of the orgasm. She eventually fell back down to reality, trembling with aftershocks as Hiccup slid out of her, breaking their intimate connection. 

She heard Hiccup say something and opened her eyes to see him looking rather worried, holding the well used condom in his hand. 

“Huh?” she asked, propping herself up on her elbows to get a closer look. 

“I’m so sorry, I thought I felt something different during it and I should’ve stopped but I don’t know what happened. It looks like it broke,” Hiccup said, anxiously. Astrid flopped back down on the pillow and put a hand over her forehead. 

“It’s okay, I’m on the pill,” she yawned and stretched out. She should probably go and wash up or something but her limbs felt like jelly and sleep sounded a lot more appealing. Hiccup made a sound of relief and got off the bed to dispose of the broken condom. When he returned, Astrid was already half asleep and curled up under the blankets. He climbed in next to her, feeling rather awkward now that the main event was over, but like her, he was too tired to do anything other than sleep. He lay on the pillow next to her and watched her through bleary eyes as sleep threatened to overtake his mind. Before it succeeded in dragging him under, he reached out a hand to brush the loose strands of hair away from Astrid’s face, taking the opportunity to admire her beauty just for a moment.

“I think you’re great,” he whispered to her. He didn’t expect her to answer but then a mumbled reply sounded from her lips.

“Hmm, you’re pretty great, too.”

Hiccup smiled at that and removed his hand moments before he blacked out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And they made it, so much for not wanting to get laid Astrid lol. Funny how the 'Unexpected' can happen even when we think we have our mind set on something.
> 
> Shoutout to Fangstryker and Shipmistress for beta-reading this chapter for me :).


	3. No regrets

When Astrid woke the next morning, her head felt like it was about to split open and she instantly regretted drinking as much as she had. She rolled over, groaning as the pain in her head throbbed with the slight movement and tried licking her dry, cracked lips to moisten them. Her mouth and throat felt furry and dry, almost making it difficult to swallow. Water sounded pretty good right about now so she moved to get up when she noticed the body lying next to her. She paused in confusion, the memories of only hours before came flooding back to her. _Great, so much for just going out to have fun, Astrid,_ she thought to herself. 

She had never had a one night stand before so was feeling completely lost as to what to do, was she supposed to wake him up now, or perhaps get out of bed and go wait in the lounge until he woke up himself. Feeling awkward, she laid back down, grabbing her head in her hands to try and stop the pounding. She was definitely regretting the amount of alcohol she had drunk, but there was not a single part of her that regretted coming home with Hiccup. He had been amazing, more than amazing - perfect even. He had given her some of the most intense orgasms that she had ever felt in her life, and for the first time in six months, the memory of a certain ex-boyfriend was no longer haunting her every thought. 

Hiccup rolled over onto his back, arm crossing over his eyes as he adjusted to the morning sun that was streaming through the crack in the curtains. He was obviously feeling the same way that Astrid was right now, judging by his groan and how he licked his own dry, cracked lips. 

“Morning,” Astrid said, trying to sound casual even though she felt nervous all over. Hiccup lowered his arm, blinking rapidly to try and focus on her before breaking out into a soft smile. 

“Morning, yourself, milady,” he replied with a stretch and a yawn. “I know you just moved here, but I don’t suppose you have coffee do you?” 

Astrid laughed, wincing when it made her head hurt even worse. “I do have coffee, or even vodka if you decide your hangover is not strong enough.”

Hiccup snorted, “Yeah, I think I’ve had enough drinking for quite a while, those berserker cocktails are like the devil's potion.” Astrid laughed again, this time ignoring the pain in her head. She was relieved that it wasn’t awkward between them, especially because of last night’s events and the fact that they were both still fully naked. She didn’t miss the way his eyes roamed over her form, before coming back to meet her eyes with an unapologetic grin.

“Coffee it is then, I’ll just get dressed and put the jug on,” she told him, getting off the bed to rummage through her drawers. She would just shower later on. 

“You could just stay naked and make the coffee, I won’t be complaining,” he joked and raised his arms to block his jeans that she threw his way. “I’ll take that as a no then.” Astrid snorted, and rolled her eyes playfully at him while putting her bra on. She decided to wear a singlet top and shorts since it was bound to be another hot day and at least it would be somewhat comfy. 

When she turned around, Hiccup was mostly dressed, still buttoning his shirt up with deft fingers that made Astrid’s heart quicken as it remembered exactly what those fingers were capable of. Snapping herself out of it, she exited the room and hopped over all the moving boxes to get to the kitchen to fill the jug up with water. Hiccup came out seconds later and cursed as he tripped over a box, quickly apologising when she peeked around the corner to see if he was all right. 

“Do you have sugars in your coffee?” she asked as he took a seat at the table.

“Just one teaspoon, please,” he replied, tapping his fingers on the table as he glanced around the small apartment. “So you just moved here?” 

“Yeah, just yesterday actually. I’d been living at my friend's place for the past 6 months as I couldn’t afford to move into my own place until now.” Hiccup nodded, taking the mug she offered him with a murmur of thanks. She sat down next to him, her own mug in her hands as she sipped at the liquid gingerly. Water would have probably been the best choice to drink after a hangover, but her brain was definitely going to appreciate the caffeine hit. “What about you? Do you live around here?” 

“Yeah, I live just on the other side of town, with my cousin Snotlout, and our friends Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Tuffnut.”

“That’s a big crowd to have in one house,” Astrid remarked, taking another sip of her drink and cringing when she remembered Snotlout’s attempts to woo her at the club. 

Hiccup shrugged, “It is, although there are four bedrooms in the house, Fishlegs and Ruffnut share a room obviously and then we each have a room of our own. So it’s not too bad.” Astrid smiled, not knowing how to reply to that so she just busied herself with a piece of loose fabric on her top. “I take it you prefer living alone since this is just a one bedroom place?” he asked, breaking the silence.

“Yeah, I do like my space,” she answered, not meeting his eyes. “That and I’ve also learnt that I am better off alone.”

Hiccup raised his eyebrows at that, “Well you were definitely _not_ alone last night if I remember correctly,” he teased, and she gave a small smile in return, knowing that he was just trying to be funny. 

“Well yes, you aren’t wrong there. But I am talking about relationships,” she said, slowly. His features immediately softened and he waited for her to elaborate, obviously sensing that it was something serious. “Let’s just say...that I didn’t have the greatest upbring, I mean my dad left us when I was pretty young, just one day up and left without any warning to me or my mum. He ended up leaving us for his co-worker and never even looked back except for the odd birthday card in the mail. We had been so close when I was little, and then all of a sudden it was like I was nothing to him. My mum was devastated and had to work long hours just to keep us both afloat - which meant that I was left to look after myself most of the time. In a way, I pretty much had to raise myself - she was gone by the time I woke up in the morning and then would go out drinking after work which meant that I had to make myself dinner from the age of eight and put myself to bed.” Astrid inhaled, closing her eyes to try and calm the rage simmering deep inside of her before exhaling. “And then there is the recent ex-boyfriend, who pretty much did the same thing of cheating but also decided to do the _cheating_ in the bed that he shared with me, for god knows how long and then decided to use _my_ credit card to buy his other girlfriend presents until it was fully maxed out and I was left with the bill when he decided to fully trade me in for her.” 

Hiccup had remained silent during her rant, and she almost thought that he would make an excuse to get up and leave her crazy ass sitting there. But he didn’t, instead she opened her eyes to see a look of understanding and sympathy on his face. “I’m sorry you had to go through all that, Astrid,” he murmured, reaching out as though to place his hand over hers but then suddenly decided against it. “I can sort of sympathise, my mum ended up leaving me when I was young as well, and I haven’t seen her since either, and my dad - well he did his best I suppose, but my godfather Gobber did a better job at raising me. As for partner’s, well let’s just say that I haven’t had the greatest luck there either, but it hasn’t deterred me from wanting to try again, I know that it won’t all be bad.”

Astrid nodded, feeling somewhat comforted that he understood how she felt, but it still didn’t change her feelings toward relationship’s. “Every important person in my life has ended up leaving or hurting me, and I’m done with it. I’m never going to get close to another person, not _ever._ I’m better off alone. _”_

Hiccup’s face fell at that statement, but Astrid said nothing further and just took both their empty cups to the sink. She felt bad at her little outburst but she couldn’t give him any sort of hope that anything romantic could happen between them, even if the sex had been amazing. An awkward silence washed over them both and Astrid started regretting what she had said, desperately trying to find a way to lighten the mood again. “Are you hungry?” she blurted out suddenly and his head snapped up in surprise.

“Ah, yeah I am a little bit. I didn’t want to ask if you had any food because well...ah,” he said, almost shyly.

“I haven’t had the chance to go grocery shopping yet, but there is a little cafe a few blocks away if you were interested in grabbing a bite to eat,” she offered while filling up a glass of water and chugging it down. 

A smile lit up on Hiccup’s face, “Sure I would love to, and maybe I can get Fishlegs to come and pick me from there after.”

“I can drop you back if you want, saves him coming all the way over here.” 

Hiccup nodded, “Okay deal, but I’ll pay for breakfast since you paid the Uber fare, it’s only fair.”

“Deal,” Astrid agreed, pulling out her box of pills and swallowing one down with another glass of water. It was probably a few hours later than she would normally take it, considering they had slept in until mid morning, but she assumed it would still be okay. She took it on time every other day so surely it wouldn’t be too much of an issue. “Should we go now?” 

“Sure, ready when you are,” Hiccup answered, getting out of the chair and pushing it back in. They both exited her small apartment and walked down the same stairs that they had drunkenly, stumbled up in their desperation to make it to the bedroom less than eight hours ago. 

Normally, Astrid would’ve walked to the cafe since it was only a few blocks away, but having a hangover did not give her any motivation to do any sort of exercise whatsoever. So instead, she led Hiccup over to her little hatchback car that was parked in the designated parking lot for tenants and unlocked it. She got into the driver's seat as Hiccup dropped into the passenger seat, and turned on the engine, putting her sunglasses on to try and prevent the sun’s brightness from making her headache even worse. 

They engaged in small talk on the short ride there, and Astrid found she quite liked his company, even more than last night with the vague snippets she remembered at the club. He was sarcastic and funny but also kind and thoughtful, the very traits that she was attracted to. It didn’t help that he was extremely good looking and that she had already had a taste of what he had to offer in the bedroom. _Snap out of it, you are better off alone,_ **_remember_ ** _,_ she told herself angrily, as she turned into the carpark of the cafe and found a park by the front entrance. 

Hiccup held the door open for her, and she gave him a grateful smile while passing through. The cafe was fairly busy, especially as it was a late Sunday morning and the loud chatter did nothing to help the dull pain in their heads. Grimacing, Astrid turned to look at Hiccup who had a similar look on his face. It was definitely too noisy there, and she didn’t know if she could stand it much longer, even with the yummy food that was presented in the display cabinets in front of them, 

“What do you say about getting the food for takeaway?” Hiccup murmured in her ear, the closeness of him immediately making her body tingle. She couldn’t make her brain function enough to form a reply so she just smiled and nodded. Hiccup moved forward to stand in line and she followed, trying her best to read the menu above them. In the end she went with pancakes with bacon and maple syrup. Normally the carbs and sugar would put her off picking such a meal, but right now, it was exactly what she was craving. Hiccup went with eggs benedict, and ordered another coffee as well, oblivious to the flirting smile the barista was giving him as the order was passed through. Astrid snorted to herself, for all the person knew, she could've been his girlfriend and they were ogling him even as she stood next to him - though she really couldn’t blame them at all. 

Once they had their takeaway boxes handed to them, they quickly escaped from the noisy building and hurried back to the car, deciding on eating the food in there. “I felt like my head was going to split open if I stayed in there any longer,” Astrid told him, popping some of the maple syrup coated pancake into her mouth and letting out a moan of satisfaction at the sweet taste. Hiccup almost choked on his bun upon hearing the sound and she slapped him on his back, fighting back a laugh. 

“That good?” he asked, eyes still watering from the near choking episode. 

“Very good, I haven’t had pancakes in a while. It’s not really a part of my diet as I normally refrain from eating too much carbs or sugar.” 

Hiccup hummed in acknowledgment, “You mentioned something about working with Eret’s boyfriend Dagur- he works at a gym right?” 

“Yeah, we’ve worked together at the Edge for almost a year now. He teaches some classes there while I’m one of the personal trainer’s.” 

“A personal trainer, nice! I haven’t been to the gym since - ,” Hiccup trialed off slightly, choosing to take another bite instead before adding, “since my physical therapy for my leg after the accident.” 

Astrid stopped chewing, eyes wide as she remembered him telling her about his prosthetic leg last night. “Can...can I ask what happened?” 

“It was a work related accident around five years ago. I worked in engineering as an apprentice and I was trying to assess why one of the machines was smoking, I stupidly went to close and my left leg ended up getting sucked in and crushed. My workmates managed to free me but I had lost consciousness by then and my leg was so mangled they had to amputate it - this was the result,” Hiccup gestured to the prosthetic on his left leg, looking a bit deflated.

Astrid cringed at the mental image of Hiccup’s leg being crushed in a machine. She couldn’t imagine the pain he would have gone through, not to mention how much it would have changed his life. “I’m so sorry,” she murmured, looking down at the empty cardboard tray that had held the pancakes. “I can’t imagine what that would have been like for you.” 

“It was hard - and still is hard, but every time I feel down about it, I remind myself that I’m still alive,” he said with a tight smile. “And I’m lucky that Gobber was kind enough to give me a job here, because back in my hometown, no one would hire me because they saw me as a liability.”

“Fuckers,” Astrid cursed, earning an amused look from Hiccup. “Sorry, I just hate it when people discriminate like that.” 

“Agreed, though it isn’t likely to change. People just see me as not being _able_ when in fact I can do most things.” 

Astrid gave him a smile before reaching out to take his rubbish so she could dispose of them. Now that they had finished breakfast, she would need to drop him back to his house, even though part of her wanted to keep talking. The other part knew that they would have to go their separate ways at least soon. _It’s a one night stand, not happy ever after, Astrid,_ she told herself. 

Hiccup gave her the directions and she started up the car to head towards his place, humming along to the song that was playing on the radio. He was rather quiet as they drove, and Astrid started to wonder if she had upset him. But when she snuck a glance while they were stopped at a red light, he seemed content just looking out the window. 

Hiccup pointed out his house and she pulled over, admiring the nicely decorated garden as he undid his seatbelt. “Nice garden!” she exclaimed, and he shrugged.

“Yeah, Fishlegs is an avid gardener.” 

“I see,” Astrid replied, still admiring the various coloured flowers, then she noticed a large figure slumped in front of a shrub by the porch. “Ah...is that Snotlout passed out on your lawn?” 

Hiccup moved forwards to look past her and snorted, “Looks like it.” 

“Is he...alive?” 

Hiccup looked over again, one eyebrow raised, “Yeah, he always passes out on the lawn after a night out, nothing new.” He went to open the door but then paused, turning back to look at her. “Um, I kind of have to ask...but do you remember last night when the...you know, condom broke?” 

Astrid flushed pink and nodded. The memories of last night were patchy, but the pleasure and that certain bit, were definitely parts she remembered. “Yeah,” she answered, looking back at the garden so he wouldn’t see the redness of her cheeks.

“Well, I just wanted to double check that you...are on the pill, so there’s no risk for...you know.” 

“I am, don’t worry. There won’t be any chance of that. And I also don’t have any...you know.” And it was true, she had gone and got a full sexual health check after the breakup, especially since _he_ had been unfaithful. And to her relief it had come back all clear. 

“Good to know,” Hiccup replied, and opened the door. “Maybe I might see you around sometime.” 

“Yeah, maybe we will,” Astrid responded, giving him a bright smile. She waited until he had walked up the path, past the sleeping form of Snotlout and to the front door where he turned and waved before going inside. She waved back and then started the car up again to head back to her place, or perhaps even the supermarket since she did need to get groceries. 

As she drove on, she couldn’t help but regret not getting Hiccup’s number. Even if she didn’t want to pursue a romantic relationship, being friends with him would have been great, and a small part of her did want to see him again. She wasn’t overly sure it would be a good idea though, especially after last night. The likelihood of developing feelings was certainly high, and that was a risk Astrid was not willing to take- not again. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hands up if you think Hiccstrid should have exchanged numbers. 
> 
> Hope everyone had happy holidays :).


	4. Hesitations

Astrid set her shopping bags down onto the kitchen floor, unpacking the meat and chilled foods to put into the fridge. She decided to do the rest later, pouring herself a drink and getting out the chicken salad to eat before sitting down to check her phone. There were a few texts from Heather and two from Dagur, both checking up on her after last night. She opened the texts from Heather first, bracing herself for the teasing she was likely to get since she had gone home with Hiccup after saying she hadn’t been interested in getting laid. 

**_Hey, you awake yet? How was your night ;) Did you have ‘FUN’? I ended up going home with Fishlegs and Ruffnut. I’m still at their place._ **

**_Astrid? Are you okay?_ **

**_Nevermind, Hiccup just walked in and told me that you guys went out for something to eat. He had the biggest smile on his face. It must’ve been a great night, you will have to text me and tell me all about it. :)_ **

Astrid arched an eyebrow, piling some of the salad in her mouth as she read the texts again. So Heather had gone home with Fishlegs AND Ruffnut, and she had still been at Hiccup’s house when she had dropped him off there only a few hours ago. It was just after 2pm according to the time on her watch, three hours since she had dropped Hiccup off and they had parted ways

Clicking on the reply button, Astrid began to type a message back.

**Hey, sorry I went grocery shopping, had no food in the cupboards which is why we had to go out for breakfast. Night was good, and Hiccup was great. But tell me about YOUR night?**

She checked Dagur’s messages next. 

Hey Astrid, Heather told me you went home with Hiccup, Eret’s workmate. We’re happy that you decided to ‘have fun’ after all, but if you need anything, let us know okay. 

Oh, and Eret said that Hiccup’s a great guy and you made an excellent choice ;).

Astrid smiled and sent back a quick ‘thank you’ followed by a heart emoji. As she went to place her phone back on the table, an incoming call from Heather lit up the screen. 

Astrid clicked accept and held it up to her ear, balancing it while she took her dishes to the sink. “Hello?”

“Hey, how’s that head of yours?” Heather asked with a teasing tone. 

Astrid huffed, “Great, better than it was earlier that’s for sure. And how about yours?” 

“Good, I’ve drunken heaps of water so it’s not that bad now. Fishlegs is still in bed, so Ruffnut and I are playing a game.”

“You’re still there?” Astrid asked, though the answer was clear if she and Ruffnut were playing a game. It also meant that Heather would be around Hiccup as well and Astrid wasn’t sure how to feel about that, especially if her name was coming up in their conversations.

“Yeah, they invited me to hang out a little longer, so I thought why not. I actually really like them - both of them. Fishlegs is a Herpetologist and gets to travel the world for work, isn’t that awesome? He is going to show me some of his findings.” 

“Oh nice,” Astrid remarked. “That’s cool that they still want to be friends...or are you guys going to make this a regular thing?” 

“They expressed interest in hanging out more so I thought I would see how things go. But tell me about you and Hiccup? How was he?” Heather asked cheerfully.

Astrid flushed at the brash question even though there was no one around to see her embarrassment. “Ah yeah, it was...really good. Really, really good.” 

Heather chuckled, “Well judging from the smile on that boy’s face when he walked in earlier, I’d say that statement is more than accurate.” 

Now Astrid was really blushing. “Was he? Or maybe it was happiness to finally get away from me.” 

Heather scoffed, “Yeah, sure. Come on Astrid, don’t play dumb. Did you at least get his number?” 

“No, I thought it was best that we just left things as they were. It was just a one night stand, not a date or anything,” Astrid answered as she bent down to start putting the rest of the groceries away. 

Heather sighed, “You can’t just keep blowing potential partners off Astrid, I know what Jack did to you was really terrible...but it doesn’t mean that every relationship will turn out the same.” Astrid grunted in reply, knowing that there was no use in debating it with her when she didn’t seem to understand just how much Astrid was still hurting. “Maybe I could give him your number now? He’s just in the kitchen -” 

“No! Please don’t Heather. I just don’t think it’s a good idea.” 

Heather made a tutting noise and Astrid could swear she heard her eyes roll. “Okay fine, I won’t. I’ll just tell him you really liked his dick then.” Astrid’s mouth gaped open in shock but before she could reply, Heather let out a laugh and hung up the phone. Astrid cursed under her breath, typing an angry message back instead.

**If you dare say anything like that, I will kick your ass so hard the next time I see you.**

She placed her phone on the counter, still seething and continued unpacking the groceries, desperately trying to not think about Hiccup or last night. Unfortunately, her mind betrayed her and decided to replay the entire night’s events, including how his hands had felt when they roamed her bare body. How his mouth and tongue had felt as he tasted her. She remembered how he had felt deep inside of her and the sound of their moans when they came undone almost simultaneously. The memories sparked something inside of Astrid, her body obviously craving a repeat. She cursed inwardly and decided to have a shower - a cold one to hopefully sedate the growing arousal. 

She turned the shower on, letting it run while she stripped out of her clothes before stepping into the narrow cubicle. She gasped when the cold water ran over her flushed body, instantly doing its job of taming the arousal. Turning the water to warm, Astrid leaned back with a contented sigh. She was tired after the events of last night, and was looking forward to bedtime. Luckily the hangover was almost gone, meaning that she would be able to get a relaxing night without the dull ache in her head. 

After the shower, Astrid dried herself and got dressed before going back to the kitchen to check her phone, seeing that there were three messages, each from Heather. 

**_Don’t worry I won’t ;)._ **

**_Ah, Hiccup is now asking me if it would be okay for him to have your number? What should I say?_ **

**_Astrid! Quick! What do you want me to tell him, yes or no?_ **

Astrid bit the inside of her cheek, wondering what to send back. On one hand, she was eager to talk to Hiccup again, she had enjoyed their time together in so many ways and was interested in becoming friends. She was also cautious. What if he wanted a repeat? Or worse, what if she developed feelings for him after they became friends and it made things weird between them? Not to mention what happened whenever she got close to people.  _ They either hurt you or leave you,  _ she reminded herself. She hesitated for a moment, thumb hovering over the reply button. Surely it would be okay just to talk to him - she did enjoy his company after all. Exhaling slowly and pressing reply, Astrid began to type the message.

**Okay, you can give it to him.**

Astrid hoped that she wouldn’t regret this choice, even though it was only so they could talk and maybe become friends, nothing more. There was no point being anxious about developing feelings when the plan was to keep it strictly platonic. Her phone buzzed on the table and she quickly picked it up to see the reply from Heather. 

_ I gave it to him.  _

**Okay cool, I am going to try and get some more unpacking done.**

_ Good idea, I’ll text you later, Fishlegs, Ruffnut and I are going out for a bit.  _

Astrid put her phone down and went to sort out the rest of the boxes, looking forward to finally being able to settle into the new apartment. She didn’t have the time to do it tomorrow, given that she had work and would likely be too tired to do anything. Luckily it would only take a few hours, meaning that she would hopefully be finished before dinner time. 

***

It only took two hours for everything to be put away, but it was enough to drain Astrid’s energy completely. She couldn’t even be bothered cooking dinner - opting to have a protein shake instead. Groaning, she laid on the couch, sipping at the shake absentmindedly. Her phone buzzed on the table, lighting up with a text notification. Astrid flung a hand out, groping around the table until it landed on the device. Blinking, she unlocked it to see a text from an unknown number, immediately knowing that it would be Hiccup. Heart accelerating in anticipation, Astrid opened the text. 

_ Hey, it’s Hiccup. Heather said it was okay if she gave me your number. Hope it is actually okay and she wasn’t lying… anyway I just wanted to say that I had a great time last night. Ah yeah, but how are you? It’s probably a bit soon to text you since it has only been like a few hours since we saw each other. But I was bored soooo… yeah.  _

_ Oh and just to clarify, I am clean as well, had a check up done recently...I probably should have mentioned that before getting out of the car but yeah, nothing here.  _

Astrid couldn’t help but grin when reading the text. The rambling was so Hiccup, even though she had barely known him for 24 hours, she already recognised his tendency to ramble when he was nervous. She did appreciate the clarification that he was clean though - especially since the condom  _ had  _ broken. 

**Hey, yeah it’s no problem. I had a great time as well. And thanks for letting me know.**

She sent that message before typing the next.

**And I am doing okay. Just finished putting the last of the boxes away and feel like my bones have turned to jelly.**

Astrid sent that message, letting the phone fall onto her stomach as she continued drinking the last of the protein shake. His reply followed within a few minutes.  __

_ Oh nice! At least you’re all finished now. No more almost breaking your ankle when tripping over boxes. Oh wait, no that was me ;) _

Astrid choked on her drink, coughing and spluttering with tears springing to her eyes when she remembered how he had almost tripped over a box earlier that morning. 

**Lol, yeah. Well you won’t have to worry about that next time you are here.**

Astrid sent the message, not realising how suggestive that sounded until his reply came. 

_ Almost sounds like an invitation to come back over lol. _

Panicking, and inwardly kicking herself for not thinking, Astrid quickly debated on how to respond. If she joked about him coming back over, it could lead them down a path where there was no turning back. But she also didn’t want to offend him. 

**Hah! Don’t get ahead of yourself there, mister.**

Deciding that the reply was acceptable, she quickly sent it and went to rinse her glass, hoping that he wouldn’t take it the wrong way. 

_ Worth a try lol. I am just joking though. I understand it was just a one night stand. But I would really like to be friends...if you were interested? _

Astrid smiled while reading the text over. It was exactly what she wanted.

**Sure. Friends sounds good.**

_ :). Okay, FRIEND. I better go and catch up on some sleep. I have work tomorrow. Talk soon.  _

**Sweet dreams, FRIEND lol.**

  
Astrid couldn’t help but smile as she sent the last message, deciding it was probably a good idea to get some sleep herself, since it would be an early start for work. She brushed her teeth and hair before getting into her pajamas, climbing into bed with a sigh of relief. Exhausted felt like an understatement compared to how she was feeling. Adjusting the pillow, Astrid laid back down, curling in a ball on her side and inhaling deeply when the whiff of something unfamiliar reached her nostrils. She picked up the other pillow, bringing it to her nose to smell the faint scent of new leathers mixed with a type of cologne - Hiccup’s scent. For some reason the smell offered her comfort, so she held it close, knowing that the scent would soon be gone when she washed her sheets the next day.  _ Just friends!  _ Astrid reminded herself before drifting into a deep sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of text conversations here. But it is still a step forward :).


	5. Realisations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning, this chapter contains 'Period or Menstrual' descriptions, nothing major, just something that is brought up. Just in case it grosses anyone out...

Two weeks had passed since Astrid and Hiccup’s drunken one night stand. And so far things hadn’t been awkward between them at all, in fact they found themselves constantly texting each other about random things - including swapping funny GIFS. Astrid had been quite relieved to have someone to talk to considering Heather was often preoccupied with Fishlegs and Ruffnut. She also still had Dagur during work hours, their constant banter always making it an enjoyable shift, especially on the slower days. He and Eret were busy this weekend though, which left Astrid wondering what she could do. 

When Hiccup asked her what she was doing this weekend, she replied truthfully and told him that she had no plans, leading him to invite her over to watch Marvel Avengers with him and his flatmates. She considered saying no, but after debating it further, decided why not. They were friends after all, and friends hung out together. 

Braiding her blonde locks, Astrid observed herself in the mirror, eying the outfit of a red tank top and black, denim jeggings. Nothing fancy, but still good enough for a casual outing. She tied the end of the braid off, walking out of the room and down to the kitchen, cursing when another sharp cramp came from her uterus - a reminder that her period would be due within a few days. Just what she wanted. At least that ruled out any possibility of pregnancy, though being on the mini pill and using a condom made that highly unlikely anyway - even if the condom had broken partway through. 

Astrid got her bag and keys, slipping on a pair of black converses before heading out the door. She was going to drive herself to Hiccup’s since she wasn’t planning on drinking that weekend. Driving over to the other side of town, Astrid began to feel nervous. She couldn’t exactly pinpoint why but perhaps it was because she hadn’t seen Hiccup in person since dropping him off at his place two weeks ago. Texting had been easy, there was no face to face conversations with texting and emojis were the only way to express emotions. Being face to face would be different, maybe even awkward. There was no turning back now though, she was already halfway there and he was expecting her. 

Astrid pulled into the driveway of Hiccup’s house, seeing that Heather’s car was already there. She hadn’t told Astrid that she would be there, though Astrid had expected it after their brief conversations over the past two weeks. Turning the ignition off, she gathered her things and got out, taking a deep breath before walking up the path to the front door. She raised her hand, giving the door a light tap with her knuckles and waited. The door opened and she looked up, expecting to see Hiccup but seeing a tall, lanky man with blonde dreads instead. She vaguely remembered meeting him at Defender’s and was sure his name was Tuffnut - Ruffnut’s twin brother 

“Oh er, hi, I’m Astrid, we met at the club a few weeks ago. Hiccup invited me over for -”

“Hey Hiccup, little miss hottie has arrived!” Tuffnut called out behind him. Astrid flushed a brilliant shade of red as he beckoned her to come in, standing back while she took her shoes off. Hiccup came into the hallway, his own cheeks slightly pink as he shot Tuffnut an exasperated look. Tuffnut just shrugged, giving Astrid a wink as he sauntered back into the living room without a care in the world. 

“Sorry about him, he’s uh, got no filter,” Hiccup told her sheepishly. Astrid just smiled, standing there awkwardly holding her handbag and waiting to be led into the living room...or somewhere that wasn’t in the hallway. Hiccup finally came to his senses, shaking his head slightly as he realised they were still standing there awkwardly. “Uh, this way. Just follow me.” 

Astrid followed him down the hallway, past a few bedrooms and into the living room where Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Heather were sitting on the couch, snuggled under a blanket while Snotlout was seated on the other. Upon seeing Astrid, Snotlout eagerly patted the seat next to him, inviting her to sit there. Astrid turned towards Hiccup, giving him a silent plea to help her out since she didn’t really want to sit next to Snotlout. He surveyed her look, noticing her plea and opened his mouth to say something but Tuffnut bet him to it. 

“Seriously? I was gone for like two minutes and you’re already offering up my seat to the pretty newcomer. Where is the loyalty?”

Snotlout threw a hand up, finger pointing at him accusingly. “ _ You _ left me passed out in the garden for like three hours.”

Tuffnut sniggered, sitting down with the large bowl of popcorn. “I’m pretty sure the neighbours cat pissed on you as well.”

Astrid and the others giggled behind their hands while Snotlout gave him a horrified look. “And you didn’t think to shoo it off!” 

Tuffnut blinked. “No. Why would I? The garden is the cat’s toilet, you were the one intruding. And also  **you** chose to go back out there and sleep after coming back inside.” Everyone erupted in laughter, causing Snotlout to clench his fists in anger. 

“Oh just you  **wait** ! I’m going to turn Chicken into the next Sunday roast if you keep that up! And I went back outside to sleep because your sister and her new girlfriend sound like wailing sirens. Honestly, I can barely handle Ruffnut making noises, but two of them. No way!”

Fishlegs coughed, choosing to inspect something on his shirt while Ruffnut and Heather shot Snotlout a look that implied he was seconds away from getting his ass kicked. 

Astrid gave Hiccup a bewildered look, and he just smiled, leaning over to whisper in her ear. “It’s okay. That’s just their usual banter. They love each other really.” Astrid looked relieved, and took the armchair next to the couch where Heather, Fishlegs and Ruffnut were sprawled out. She didn’t miss the way Heather had her fingers interlocked with Ruffnut’s, her thumb slowly stroking hers. One of their brief conversations earlier last week had Heather telling her that she was now in a relationship with Fishlegs and Ruffnut. It was something Astrid didn’t quite understand, but nonetheless, she was happy for her. 

Hiccup took a seat on the floor next to the armchair where Astrid was sitting, grunting as he folded his right leg, extending the left that was his prosthetic. She suddenly felt guilty that she had taken the seat, not even considering that he wouldn’t have anywhere else to sit. 

“Hiccup sit here if you want, I can sit on the floor. I don’t mind,” she offered, getting up so that he could take it. Hiccup shook his head, hand encircling her wrist to gently pull her back into the seat. 

“No, no. You are the guest. Please just stay there,” he replied with a sincere smile. She obliged, slowly pulling her hand out from his loose hold and trying to ignore the tingles he had left on her skin. 

“Are we going to watch this movie or are you guys going to keep playing musical chairs?” Heather teased, giving Astrid a knowing look. Astrid just rolled her eyes in response, tucking her legs to the side as the movie began to play. 

As they watched the movie, the scent of new leathers and cologne reached her nostrils, reminding her of how she’d snuggled against the pillow that contained that very scent - that was left there as a reminder of that one night together. Astrid squirmed in the seat as her mind gave a little replay of how the man sitting in front of her had pleasured her into a state of euphoria. Trying to distract herself, Astrid focused intensely on the movie, but now the heat was spreading everywhere, making her squirm even more. It must have been noticeable because Hiccup turned to give her a concerned look. 

“I, uh. Need to go to the toilet,” Astrid whispered, trying to not distract the others. 

Hiccup nodded, getting up to stand. “Here, I will show you where it is,” he offered. Astrid smiled gratefully, following him out of the room, ignoring everyone’s gaze on their backs and the smirks. He led her back down the hallway, coming to a stop outside a door to the right. “Just in there,” he said, leaning against the wall as she brushed past him. 

“Thanks,” Astrid responded, shutting the door with a gentle click. She heard him retreat back to the living room and gave a sigh, putting her face in her hands. It had definitely been a bad idea to come here. It was clearly obvious that she had developed feelings for him, her body knew it, and now her heart did as well. It was the very position that Astrid hadn’t wanted to be in, but she had known it was likely to happen eventually with her already being attracted to him. Even so, she just couldn't bring herself to trust someone like that again. Her heart would surely shatter if it received one more break. 

Friends was the best option, but even that was complicated. How could she be Hiccup’s friend while harbouring feelings. Maybe she would need to put a distance between them; it might help the feelings calm down a bit and also let her get her head straight. Or maybe she was just overreacting, this was the first time they had seen each other in person since that night after all. 

Hitting her head on the wall with a light thud, Astrid groaned in frustration, desperately trying to ignore the persistent pressure down below. Deciding to actually use the bathroom since she was there, she then hurried back to the living room where everyone was still watching the movie. Only Hiccup seemed to notice her return. He smiled as she sat back down, oblivious to how flustered she really was. 

The movie was finished not long after and Astrid helped them tidy up the drinks and snacks. She said goodbye to the rest of them, gathering up her belongings before going to the door. Hiccup followed her, hands in his pockets as she opened it to head to her car. It was already dark outside, indicating that it was later than what Astrid had originally thought. Luckily, the street lights illuminated the driveway, making it easier for her to get to the car without tripping over in the darkness. Hiccup came as well, obviously wanting to see her safely to the car, a gesture Astrid found rather sweet even though she was more than capable of protecting herself. 

“Thanks for coming,” Hiccup said as she unlocked the car. 

“Thanks for inviting me - I had a lot of fun,” Astrid replied. And it was true, she had enjoyed herself, even with the slightly awkward situation of her having to hide away in the bathroom to clear her head. 

“No problem, I’m glad you had a good time. We should do it again - that is, if you’re interested?” 

Astrid nodded, though she was slightly conflicted on doing it again so soon. These feelings would need to be controlled first, there was no way she could let it get out of hand. Hiccup leant forward, giving her a brief, friendly hug which Astrid returned. As they separated, another painful cramp hit, making her gasp out loud, hand gripping the car door. Hiccup immediately looked concerned, reaching out as though to touch her. “Astrid? What is it? Are you hurt somewhere?” 

Astrid shook her head, feeling too embarrassed to try and explain where the pain was coming from. “It’s fine, I just had a pain in my side. Have a good night, Hiccup.” She jumped in the car and he stood back, allowing her to reverse down the driveway, waving as she drove off. 

The intense pain down below was now replaced with dull twinges that came in small clusters, making Astrid grit her teeth as she drove home.  _ Seriously, why do you play games with me all the time. Do you want me to feel good or be in pain?  _ she pointlessly asked herself. Luckily there was some pain relief back at the apartment which would hopefully take the edge off these cramps. If her period was about to hit, then it was likely she would need to stock up on more as well. 

Astrid parked the car in her designated park, and slumped up the stairs to her apartment, exhaustion setting in as soon as she opened the door.  _ Another early night,  _ Astrid thought gloomily. For the past few days she had been feeling more tired than usual, but put it down to the busy week at work. Now it seemed rather odd as she had been getting plenty of rest over the weekend. She wondered if perhaps it was low iron and made a mental note to book a doctor's appointment for a blood test. For now, a nice hot chocolate before bed sounded great. She turned the jug on, quickly taking some pain relief to help take the edge off the cramps while it boiled and then made the hot chocolate. 

Sitting down with the steaming mug in her hands, Astrid pulled out her phone, noticing the text from Hiccup.

_ Hey, you get back home okay? _

A smile lit up on her face at his consideration. He was so sweet, but then again, Jack had been the same when he and Astrid first started dating, and look how that turned out. She couldn’t, no wouldn’t, fall back into the same web. Not again. The smile slipped away, turning into a poker face as she typed a reply.

**I did. Thanks for checking in :) and thanks again for the great night. I’m tired now though, going to head to bed soon.**

Astrid sipped at her drink, sighing in content as she swallowed the sweet liquid. The cramps had finally settled down as well, which she was rather thankful for. Hopefully they wouldn’t bother her too much at work tomorrow, especially because she had offered to assist Dagur with his master zumba class. 

She finished her drink, placing the empty mug in the dishwasher and heading to the bathroom to brush her teeth. The reflection of herself in the bathroom mirror was almost unrecognisable - with the dark circles around her eyes and pimples that had popped up out of nowhere. Grimacing slightly, Astrid took out her toothbrush, spreading toothpaste on it to scrub at her teeth. Hopefully a good night sleep will do her some good. 

Practically falling into bed, Astrid checked her phone again, seeing that Hiccup had replied with a GIF. She opened it, chuckling when she saw the cartoon teddy bear saying goodnight and sweet dreams while blowing a kiss. Before she could reply with her own GIF, Astrid’s eyelids grew heavy, the phone slipping from her grasp and onto the sheets as tiredness took over. 

***

The next morning, Astrid woke feeling like she hadn’t slept at all and even worse, the dull cramps were back. Cursing, she threw the covers off and climbed out of bed, looking around for her phone, noticing that it wasn’t on the bedside table where she normally kept it. Astrid frowned, searching under the bed until she noticed it sticking out from underneath the bed covers. She grabbed it, unlocking it to find the GIF keyboard still open from when she had been texting Hiccup. Seeing no point in replying now, she exited out of it, coming onto their text conversation and gaping when she saw that a GIF had already been sent accidentally. It wasn’t just any GIF, it was a suggestive face sitting one - obviously meant to be humorous, though there was no mistaking what it implied. 

“Oh my fucking god!” Astrid cried, quickly trying to unsend the message. It was useless because one, it had been sent last night - obviously when she had fallen asleep and either rolled or tapped the screen while it was idle. And second because Hiccup had already seen it only minutes after it was sent. He hadn’t replied either, which made Astrid feel even more humiliated. Throwing the phone to the side, Astrid buried her face in her hands as she processed how to respond. Would he find that funny? She at least hoped so. 

There wasn’t much time to figure out how to deal with the situation, considering Astrid had less than an hour to get to work, so she decided to leave it and text Hiccup later on instead. She threw on a sports bra, followed by a singlet and joggers before heading to the bathroom to braid her hair. The dark circles around her eyes were still there, perhaps even more noticeable than yesterday despite getting around eight hours of sleep.  _ Seriously,  _ she thought to herself angrily and pulled open the drawer to find some makeup to cover the circles. Astrid didn’t often wear makeup - preferred the more natural look, however in circumstances like this, it certainly did come in handy. She applied the concealer around her eyes, hiding the evidence that looked as though she hadn’t slept more than a few hours and then went to find something for breakfast. Her stomach was growling, desperate to be filled so she ate a large bowl of cereal, washing it down with a glass of orange juice. She also still needed to take her contraceptive pill, making a mental note to do so before she left. 

It wasn’t until after Astrid had left the house and was halfway down the road towards the Edge, that she realised she’d forgotten to take the pill.  _ Too late now,  _ she scolded herself. And it wasn’t like it was that much of a big deal, she wasn’t sleeping with anyone at the moment, so missing one wouldn’t make much of a difference. She carried on walking at a fast pace, enjoying the crisp morning air that was filled with the sounds of birds chirping and the odd car driving past. She came to the street where the Edge was, seeing that Dagur had already beaten her to work and was getting out of his car. 

“How did you beat me this morning?” Astrid called out to him once she was near enough for him to hear. 

“It’s almost 7:30,” he called back, locking his car and walking up to her, “You must've walked slow or slacked off this morning.” 

Astrid snorted. “I  **don’t** walk slow and I  _ don't  _ slack off.”

Dagur held his palms up in mock surrender. “Just teasing you, miss. Though you definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. Hope you are going to be able to keep up for our zumba class.” 

“Of course! You know me, I’ve never really been a morning person,” she reminded him with a smile. Dagur chuckled, opening up the doors to the gym and holding it open for her to go through. 

“Oh I know what you are like in the mornings. Usually you perk up by the time you get to work though,” he remarked, giving her side a tickle which made Astrid arch away with a laugh. “I’ve heard you and Hiccup have been getting along great, as  _ friends _ ?” 

“As  **friends** ,” Astrid confirmed. Dagur just hummed, sending her a knowing look as he locked his locker and left the staff room to start setting up. Astrid just rolled her eyes and started putting her own belongings away in a locker, deciding to quickly send Hiccup a text to clarify that the GIF was in fact an accident and apologise before she started her shift. Surprisingly, he had already replied, and Astrid flushed a bright red when she read his message. 

**I’m going to assume that was accidental XD. But for the record, you can feel free to sit on my face anytime - strictly as friends though ;) lol. Have a good day.**

_ It was an accident, sorry lol. And you have a good day as well :).  _

Astrid sent the reply, putting her phone in the locker and locking it just as another cramp hit, making her groan in both pain and annoyance. Just what she needed when she was about to start work - one with physical activity no less. She just hoped that her period would hurry up and arrive so that it could be over sooner. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Random author fact - I accidentally sent a GIF just like this to a friend so I can relate to how awkward and humiliated Astrid would have felt.


	6. Double lines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: A scene in this chapter was based on a real life memory. Brownie points to the person who guesses which one it is.

Four days later and Astrid’s wish was still yet to be granted. The cramping had ceased but other symptoms such as the bloating, pimples and breast tenderness still remained. Even worse, her nipples were so sore it felt as though she had dragged them across the concrete outside. It was not unusual for her cycle to be out of whack, sometimes it came earlier, sometimes later - but either way, the waiting certainly was not helping Astrid’s mood. 

Hitting the home button on her phone to turn off the alarm, Astrid dragged herself out of bed and padded into the bathroom to turn the shower on. She was feeling off colour this morning, perhaps it was because she hadn’t eaten much for dinner the night before. A hot shower normally helped in these circumstances so she jumped in, quickly soaping herself and rinsing. Her hair was rather greasy so she decided to wash that as well - using a decent amount of shampoo to help it regain its usual shineness. 

Once clean, Astrid turned the shower off and got dressed in her active wear. She had a few clients later that morning so needed to get to work. Brushing her teeth and fixing her wet hair into a simple braid, Astrid then went to the kitchen to sort something out to eat. She wasn’t feeling overly hungry, but if she didn’t eat now, it would be another four hours before she could have lunch.

A protein shake in a takeaway bottle served as breakfast, allowing Astrid to drink it while walking to work. Her pace was slow this morning, more so than usual, but at least the grogginess from this morning was no longer there. Astrid carried on down the street, tentatively sipping at the shake when suddenly she grimaced and spat the contents out onto the sidewalk. An elderly lady walking her dog on the opposite side of the street had seen and gave her a look of disgust, making Astrid flush with embarrassment. “Sorry,” she called out, as the lady shook her head with disapproval. Sighing, Astrid looked back down at the bottle in her hands. The shake had never tasted like this before - it was almost sour, as though the milk she’d used was well past its best before date. Deciding not to drink the rest, Astrid continued walking, hoping that she would be able to make a coffee before starting work.

Luckily for her, she arrived with fifteen minutes to spare before her shift. Putting her belongings in her locker, she walked into the staff room, noticing that Minden, the Gym’s receptionist was busy making herself a drink. “Morning,” she said cheerfully.

“Morning,” Astrid replied with a smile. “I think the protein shake I made for breakfast was off, so I’m just going to make a coffee to hopefully last me until lunch time.” 

Minden gave a sympathetic look, “That sucks!” 

Astrid nodded, tipping the contents of the shake into the sink before getting a mug out of the cupboard. She swiftly made the coffee and went to sit down at the table where Minden was busy drinking her own, casually flicking through a magazine. Astrid picked up a spare one and began to read the first page, bringing the mug to her lips to sip at the hot beverage. As soon as the liquid hit her tongue, her face screwed up in disgust and she spat it back into the mug. It tasted sour - just like the protein shake had. 

“Everything all right?” Minden asked curiously, her eyes peeking over top of the magazine. 

“Is that milk in the fridge fresh?” Astrid questioned with a confused look. 

Minden nodded, “Yes - I only just brought it this morning on my way to work.”

Now Astrid was feeling even more confused. “Mine tastes off, how does yours taste?” 

“Mine tastes fine,” Minden replied, reaching out for Astrid’s mug, “here, let me try yours.” 

Astrid pushed her mug across the table. Minden sipped the contents carefully. “Tastes okay to me,” she assured her, passing it back over. Astrid felt even more confused, it had definitely tasted off to her. She took another sip, screwing her face up yet again when the same, bitter taste coated her tongue. 

“Nope - that’s disgusting, I can’t drink it.” 

She tipped the coffee into the sink and quickly washed the mug, feeling more frustrated than ever. Minden chuckled behind her, “You know, my sister said that she had an aversion to milk when she was pregnant with my niece - said that it didn’t taste the same for her until the last trimester or something.” 

Astrid froze, the rag that she was using to dry the mug dangled in her hand as her eyes widened in realisation. It couldn’t be, could it? No, she was on the pill so it was highly unlikely. “I’m on the pill,” she told her with a shrug, trying to appear as though her heart wasn’t about to beat its way out of her chest. 

“Yeah, so was she,” Minden responded with a wink as she got up to put her empty mug into the sink. “They’re not fully reliable though, so if you are having symptoms, then it is probably best to get a test just to make sure.” She exited the staff room to head back to the front desk, leaving Astrid standing there in shock. 

Astrid finally made her feet move and walked to the lockers to get her phone. Her heart thudded as she unlocked it, opening up the browser to type in ‘symptoms of pregnancy’. She waited impatiently as it loaded, clicking on the website that was at the top of the list as soon as it appeared. Reading through it, her heart stopped thudding all together. “Breast tenderness, fatigue, nausea, cramping, acne…” she trailed off, mentally checking off the symptoms in her head. All those symptomes were there, and the fact that her period was almost five days late only made the possibility a lot higher. 

Swallowing thickly, Astrid lowered her hand, trying to contain herself since she was about to start work. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she hadn’t noticed Dagur enter the room. 

“Morning Astrid, Minden said to tell you that your clients called to reschedule, apparently they’re sick or something.” 

Astrid nodded blankly, still staring at her open locker. 

“Astrid - you okay?” Dagur asked with concern, placing his hand on her shoulder, “you look really pale.”

Astrid nodded, turning to give what she hoped was a reassuring smile as she took out her handbag and slammed the locker shut. “Yeah, I am just not feeling that great - I might just tell Alvin that I am going home for the morning since my clients aren’t coming in.” 

“Oh no, was it something you ate? I’ll text Eret to drop you off some of my Gran’s famous ginger biscuits, they are amazing. He’s got the day off today so he will be able to whip some up.” Dagur said brightly, giving her shoulder a squeeze. Astrid smiled in return and shifted past him. 

She quickly found Alvin, informing him of her intentions and left the gym, walking at a fast pace back to her apartment. Instead of going inside, Astrid got into her car and headed towards the pharmacy that was a few blocks away, hoping that they would have what she needed. It wasn’t busy, something Astrid was grateful for as she swiftly parked the car and got out. Nervously fidgeting, she opened the heavy door and walked in, immediately spotting a pharmacist who had just finished helping another customer. “What can I help you with today?” the man greeted her cheerfully as she approached him. 

Astrid felt the words get stuck in her throat, instead a choked noise escaped, making the pharmacist frown as he surveyed her carefully. “Ah, a sore throat, I have just - “

“I’m looking for a pregnancy test,” Astrid finally blurted out, feeling her cheeks flame up when the man’s eyes widened in surprise. 

“Oh, oh...yes, we have those.” The pharmacist cleared his throat and beckoned her over to a shelf on the far corner. “I recommend these ones, they’re a two pack which is always... handy.” He handed the pink box over to her shaking hands. “And good luck,” he said before leaving her to help another customer. 

Astrid paid for the product and quickly shoved it in her handbag so that it was hidden from view as she hurried out of the store. She sped home, quickly parking the car and clambering up the stairs to unlock the front door, kicking off her shoes in the corner. Taking the tests out of her bag, she ripped it open to read the instructions which were fairly basic. Pee on the end of the stick and wait five minutes for the results. One line - negative, two lines - positive.  _ Simple enough _ , she thought.

Holding her breath, she took one test out of the box and headed towards the bathroom. Eye closed, she did as the instructions stated and placed the cap back on the end with shaking hands. All she could do was watch with anticipation as the control line filled up, moving across the small screen so slowly that she started jiggling her legs impatiently. The first line - the one that she assumed was the negative one, showed up immediately after it was finished, giving her a ray of hope when there was no sign of a second line. Feeling relieved, Astrid put it onto the bathroom counter so she could clean herself up. There was still at least another three minutes to wait. 

Glancing back at the test, she noticed something different now that it had fully finished absorbing what it needed. Squinting, Astrid held the test up to the light, gasping with what she saw. It was faint, very faint, but there was a second line. It wasn’t as bright as the other one, but there was no doubt that it was the same pinkish colour. 

“No, no, no - please  _ no _ ,” Astrid begged as she slumped to the floor with the test still in her hands. Her begs went ignored, in fact the line only got brighter, even more obvious as though it was trying to prove that it was indeed positive. 

Tears welled in her eyes as she stared at the two lines, giving her the answer that she had been seeking. She was pregnant. And there was no question as to who the father was, especially since the only person she’d been with since Jack was Hiccup. The tears erupted, flowing down her cheeks as she began to sob uncontrollably. Her life had just been turned upside down by these two pink lines. How could she have been so stupid? There was no way she could have a baby, not in her current situation anyway. And what would Hiccup think? She’d have to tell him, he had a right to know after all. But would he be angry? What would become of their friendship?

“Astrid? The door was open and I saw your car downstairs, Dagur said you weren’t feeling well and asked me to make you some of those ginger biscuits. Where are...“ Eret’s voice trailed off as he came to stand in the doorway of the bathroom, obviously startled to see her slumped on the floor with tears cascading down her face. “Astrid? Hey, what’s wrong?” 

He got down to his knees, leaving the container of biscuits on the ground and shuffled along the floor to pull her into a hug, his large hand stroking her hair carefully. Astrid couldn’t even reply, her tongue felt heavy in her mouth as the wrenched sobs continued to wrack through her body. 

Eret gently rocked her backwards and forwards, muttering comforting words that she could barely comprehend given the state she was in. Eret hadn’t noticed the test which was still firmly held in her grasp. But when he pulled back to swipe at the tears, he peered down at her hands, eyes widening in realization. “Is that...a pregnancy test?” 

Astrid nodded, turning it over so he could see the screen. There was no point even trying to hide it, not when he was here and would find it suspicious if she’d try to cover it up while crying like this. Eret gasped as he surveyed the double lines, his eyes shooting back up to meet hers. “I take it, that means it's positive?” he asked with furrowed eyebrows. Astrid nodded again, sniffling slightly as more sobs tried to escape. “Shit, Astrid - is it Hiccup’s?”

“Yeah,” Astrid mumbled, avoiding meeting his eyes and instead focusing on a speck on the ground. 

Eret took her hand, holding it tightly. “Did you guys not use bedroom raincoats or something? I mean, I know you two were pretty drunk - but still.”

“It broke,” Astrid replied numbly. 

“Oh shit...what are you going to do?” 

Astrid shrugged. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do, not yet anyway. 

“Maybe you should book a doctors appointment?” Eret suggested gently. 

“Yeah,” Astrid answered gloomily. “I probably will ring them soon…I just need to get my head around it first. But please Eret - you can’t say anything to anyone, not Dagur or Heather, especially not Hiccup. Not yet.”

Eret gave her a supportive smile. “Of course I won’t say anything, and if you want someone to go with you, for support, I could come?” 

“Thanks Eret - it is probably something I should do on my own, but I appreciate the offer.”

Eret pulled her back into a bone crushing hug. “No problem, we are here for you. Always. Don’t ever forget that.”

Astrid hummed in reply, resting her head against Eret’s broad chest. They sat there for a while longer until Astrid pulled away and stood up, putting the used test in the top draw of the bathroom cabinet. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to throw it out just yet. 

“I think I might call Alvin and just tell him that I won’t be coming back in today,” she told Eret as they walked back out into the living room. 

“That’s probably a good idea,” Eret agreed. “Try to book a doctor’s appointment today if you can. I have to go and get some groceries but if you need me, I am just a text away.”

“Thanks Eret - thanks for being there for me.”

She let him out the door and shut it behind him, turning to rest her back against it as silence filled the room. She would definitely have to book a doctor's appointment, the sooner the better. Taking her phone out of her pocket, Astrid quickly sent Alvin a text to inform him that she wouldn’t be back at work and then found the number for the doctors. 

“Gronckles Medical Centre,” a posh voice sounded from the other end. 

“Ah, hi there, I am just wondering if there was a doctors appointment available today, or early tomorrow please?”

“One moment please,” the voice answered. Astrid chewed her lip as she waited, hoping that there would at least be an appointment in the next few days. “I had a cancellation for 3 o'clock today, would that work for you?” 

“Yes I’ll take it!” Astrid replied immediately. She gave the lady her details and hung up, deciding to eat some of the ginger biscuits that Eret had brought to calm her nerves. At least she wouldn’t have to wait long. Now she just had to find something to use as a distraction.

Turning on the television, Astrid flicked through the channels, snorting when it was mostly silly reality shows. Of course there was nothing good on television during the day, unless you were one of those rich folk that had the flash cable channels. An expense she couldn’t afford with having to pay back the debt from Jack. But if she couldn’t even afford cable television, how was she supposed to afford raising a baby? Hell, she didn’t even know how to care for a baby. 

Dropping the remote on the couch, Astrid sighed and slumped backwards, staring at the ceiling above as her mind raced with all the possible options. Her phone vibrated in her pocket and she pulled it out without looking at the caller, instead pressing the answer button. “Hello Alvin - look I am sorry I just text instead of calling, I just wasn’t feeling that well and -”

“Alvin?” an amused voice interrupted. Astrid paused, sitting up straight to look at the screen and gasping when she recognised the caller ID. 

“Hiccup, sorry, I thought you were my boss,” Astrid said, stammering slightly. The nerves were painfully obvious, she could hear it in her voice. Swallowing, she forced herself to sound as natural as possible. “So, ah...you called?”

Hiccup chuckled. “Yeah, I was just ringing to check up on you. I was talking to Eret earlier and apparently he was making you some ginger biscuits because you weren’t feeling well.” 

Astrid’s palms felt sweaty as she scrambled for something to say. Did he suspect something already? “Oh yeah, must've been something I ate, nothing serious.” She inhaled, waiting for his reply with every bit of hope that he would buy it. Now was not the time to tell him. Not until after the doctor’s appointment. 

Thankfully, Hiccup seemed to buy it. “That’s no good. Just asking - but was it something you cooked? Because that doesn’t need any further explanation.”

Astrid scowled. “Excuse me, but not all of us are master chefs like you. And no it wasn’t something I made.” Hiccup laughed again and Astrid couldn’t help but smile at the sound, she liked his laugh. Suddenly, a vision flashed through her head of the two of them laughing and cooing at a bundle of blankets in front of them. In this vision, they were both happy, content and in love. Shaking her head to clear that picture, Astrid bit her lip, trying to focus on what Hiccup was saying now. “Sorry - I didn’t quite catch that. What did you say?”

Hiccup paused, tutting in a teasing way. “I said, do you need anything? I am happy to drop something off on my way home from work.”

Astrid fidgeted slightly at the thought of being around him. “No - no, that’s okay. I’m fine. No need to worry about me.” 

There was a sigh on the other end of the line. “Okay, well if there is anything you do need, just let me know.”

“I will - thanks Hiccup.” She ended the call after saying goodbye, allowing her heart to finally slow down. The fact that she was going to have to tell him about the positive pregnancy test was giving her anxiety. There was no way to know how he’d react, especially given that the baby was from a one night stand. At least they were friends, she supposed. It was also his right to know, whether she liked it or not. Now she just had to hope that he would support her choice - whatever that choice may be. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmm yes, I remember the moment of seeing those two lines (multiple times actually). I'm excited to continue this story from here on out. It's going to be fun...I hope lol.


	7. An unexpected find

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here we are again :). I just want to mention that I am aware that my country's maternity care is different to those in other countries, which is why some things may seem a bit confusing, but I am going to stick with what I have experienced and know. Feel free to ask questions if anything confuses you. Anyway, hope you all enjoy..

Astrid walked into the doctors, coming to stand in the long queue. Fear was gripping every single nerve in her body, making her shiver even though the air was warm. She had no clue what to expect, none at all. 

“Hello dear,” the receptionist said, peering up from the computer. “What are you here for?” 

“I’m here to ah – I have a doctor's appointment, at 3pm. My name is Astrid Hofferson.” Astrid tapped her fingers on the desk, waiting for the receptionist to look her up on the computer. 

“Excellent. Have a seat Miss Hofferson, Dr. Zimmerman will be with you shortly.” 

Astrid pulled away and walked over to the row of chairs that were mostly filled. She found one in the corner, where a young mother and two toddlers were sitting. Sitting down awkwardly, she smiled at the mother and pulled out her phone to scroll through social media while she waited. The two children were grizzling and throwing themselves around in their seat, obviously sick of waiting. The mother was desperately trying to settle them, offering snacks as a distraction when other people in the waiting room began to stare. 

“Come on, sit still. It’s not much longer I promise,” she pleaded. One of the children threw their packet of biscuits, and it hit Astrid’s foot, bouncing off onto the floor. Astrid bent down to pick the packet up and handed it back over to the mother who gave her a grateful smile. “Thank you, we’ve been waiting for a long time and they are both over it. They’re not usually like this.”

Astrid smiled, tucking her phone back in her handbag. “I can understand that. I get pretty sick of waiting as well.” The mother looked relieved that she wasn’t bothered by her children’s behaviour, unlike the other people in the waiting room who were sending them looks of disapproval. Astrid glared at them, making a few avert their eyes towards something else. It bothered her that people thought they could stare and judge like that. Turning back to the toddlers, she pulled a funny face, making them both giggle. 

“Again,” one demanded and she obliged, this time changing it to something else. They laughed with delight, now fully distracted from their earlier antics. The mother looked relieved, slumping back in her chair as she watched the exchange.

“You are really good with them,” she remarked. Astrid looked at her in surprise. “They really like you.” 

Astrid shrugged as if it was no big deal, but somehow that compliment affected her. She had never even considered having children before – but here she was, sitting in a waiting room with her own baby growing inside of her, all because fate decided to play games. 

A nurse called out a name and the mother stood up, rounding up the two children. “Thanks again for your help,” she said to Astrid. The two children waved goodbye and she did the same, giving them a small smile. Now she sat in the corner alone, her head a stormy pit of thoughts while she waited for her own name to be called. She didn’t have to wait long, because a few moments later, the nurse returned and called out her name. Standing up, Astrid slowly made her way over to the expectant nurse and followed her down a long corridor. 

“Just in there,” the nurse told her, gesturing to an open door. Astrid thanked her and walked in to see a tall brunette doctor sitting at a desk, typing frantically on the computer. 

“Ah, Miss Hofferson, come and take a seat,” Dr Zimmerman said with a warm smile. Astrid dropped her handbag to the floor, taking a seat and waiting nervously while the doctor finished up with whatever she was doing. Finally, she turned in the seat to face Astrid. “How can I help you today?”

Astrid took a deep breath, looking into the warm, brown eyes in front of her and said, “I took a pregnancy test earlier this morning...and it was positive.” 

Dr Zimmerman nodded. “I see. Do you know when the date of your last period was?” 

Astrid counted the weeks in her head. “I think it might have been the 12th of March so just over four weeks ago now. Sometimes it is irregular though – just by a few days.” 

She hummed and swiveled back to the computer, quickly typing something on it. “And are you taking any contraceptives at the moment?” 

“Yeah, I was taking the mini pill and still am,” Astrid told her. She couldn't help but fidget with her fingers. “I was taking it properly before the – well before this happened. So I am not sure why it failed.”

“Sometimes these things happen. Were you sick at all during the past month? Occasionally the pill can be ineffective if you’ve been sick. You will need to stop taking it now though.” 

Astrid bit her lip. She had thrown up a few times when she’d had that ear infection, though she wasn’t sure if it was due to the antibiotics or the actual infection itself. Not that it mattered now anyway. She nodded in response to the doctors question and watched as she added that to whatever was being typed on the computer. 

“Right, so it’s a bit early for a scan, so what we can do is book one for about two weeks time and that will give us a more accurate idea on how many weeks you are. Today, we will do a blood test followed by another one in two days, this will confirm pregnancy and show if the HCG hormones are rising as they should,” Dr Zimmerman said.

Astrid nodded blankly, unsure of what to say now. Luckily she didn’t have to because Dr Zimmerman pulled a small folder out of a drawer and brought it up to place on the desk, reaching back down to pull something else out. Astrid blinked as she observed the folder and the other item now in front of her. The folder contained a few information booklets around pregnancy, such as what to eat and what to expect week by week. The other item was a small, cream coloured knitted jersey, with matching booties. Clearly handmade with love. 

“Here is a few bits of information, and also a little jersey and booties that the old folk in the retirement home next door knitted. They like to do that for all the new expectant mothers and they give them to us so that we can pass them on,” Dr Zimmerman told her while folding the cardigan carefully and then pushing it towards her. “Now, you will also need to find a midwife, I can provide you with a list that you can pick from. They will be responsible for all your maternity care, unless complications arise - in that case, you will be referred back to me.” Dr Zimmerman droned on, and Astrid began to feel slightly overwhelmed. 

“What are my options,” she blurted out suddenly. Dr Zimmerman paused and raised her eyebrows, waiting for her to elaborate. “I mean...what if I didn’t...choose to have this baby.” The room went still as the doctor surveyed her carefully, making her shrink in the seat. 

“Are you thinking of terminating?” The question held no judgment in the tone, yet Astrid still felt it nonetheless. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to terminate it, but she also knew that she couldn’t afford to have this baby. That and she was too young. And single. 

She looked down at her hands and nodded silently. Feeling the doctors gaze still on her, Astrid lifted her head slightly, looking into the brown eyes that held nothing but sympathy and support. “I can give you some information about termination, if you would like it. Though I must stress Miss Hofferson, don’t make the decision just yet. You’ve only just found out today, I would personally think it over for the next few days. Do you have any family support? What about the father of the baby?” 

Astrid swallowed. “I don’t have any contact with my family. I have a few friends. As for the father...well that is a bit complicated.” 

“I see,” Dr Zimmerman said and laced her fingers together. “If you do decide to terminate, then I will need to refer you to the clinic up at the hospital. However, I still think it would be wise to think about it for a few days before making a decision.”

Astrid nodded and gave her a tight smile, gathering up the folder with all the information she needed plus the knitted garments. Dr Zimmerman handed her the prescriptions for prenatal medicine and Astrid thanked her, leaving the office to walk back to the receptionist to pay for the appointment. Luckily the lab was next door to the doctors so she slipped through the double doors and strolled up to the desk, handing the nurse her form. The nurse took her right through, gesturing for her to sit in the large chair. Astrid placed her things down and did as they asked, holding her arm out so they could access the vein. 

It was over quickly, even with the dizziness that followed from the initial pin prick. The nurse told her that the results would come back within a day, and that the doctor would call her with the results. Thanking the nurse, Astrid left the building, eager to get home and read through the information. Climbing into her car, she threw the folder down onto the front seat but held onto the knitted jersey, feeling the soft fabric with trembling fingers. It was so tiny, and soft. Astrid couldn’t even imagine something so small being able to fit it. But then, she’d never really been around babies before and didn’t really have an idea on how small or big they were. 

Placing the cardigan down, Astrid put the keys into the ignition and reversed out of the parking lot, heading home. The traffic was fairly bad so it took longer than usual, but Astrid finally parked and hurried up to her apartment. She kicked her shoes off, walking over to the couch to open up the folder, deciding to read the pregnancy book first. It had information about every single week of pregnancy, including descriptions of what the baby would look like. Curious, Astrid turned to the page that was titled ‘Week four’ and began to read. She stopped when she came to the paragraph about what the baby looked like, reading over how it was around 1mm in size. Her hand came to rest over her lower abdomen, imagining the small, 1mm sized baby in there. Of course it didn’t look like a baby at the moment, just a blob, but that would soon change. 

Now Astrid felt more conflicted than ever. She flicked through the next few pages, observing how quickly the 1mm blob turned into something that resembled a baby. It was all too overwhelming. She closed the book, and threw it to the side. The doctor was right. She did need to think about this, and she also needed to tell Hiccup. The hardest part was how. She had only known him for a few weeks, and though they knew each other in the most intimate of ways – it didn’t make it any less easier. 

Sighing, Astrid decided to read through the rest of the information the doctor had provided. Her phone buzzed with a notification so she picked it up, quickly unlocking it and swiping to read the text. It was from Eret.

Hey Astrid, hope you managed to get a doctors appointment. And hope you are doing okay. 

Astrid typed back a reply. 

**Yeah, I managed to snatch an appointment that came up after someone cancelled. Which was good. She just gave me a whole bunch of information and I had to do a blood test. I still don’t know what to do...I need to tell Hiccup as well...I just don’t know how.**

She waited, hoping that Eret would at least have some advice on how to tell Hiccup, especially since they were work mates. His reply came quickly. 

Whatever you decide, I’m here for you. And as for Hiccup. The guy is great, and I’m sure he will be supportive of whatever you choose. He really likes you Astrid… and I know you have trust issues but I can promise you, it will be okay. Just tell him sooner rather than later. 

His message gave her some hope. But it still wasn’t enough to give her the courage to tell Hiccup just yet. She sent back a reply, thanking Eret for his support and telling him that she would text him later.  Now Astrid sat there in silence, unsure of what to do, until fate decided for her when a knock at the door made her jump. She quickly gathered up the pregnancy booklets and shoved them behind the couch cushion before getting up to answer the door. When she opened it, her heart almost dropped to the floor, because standing there was Hiccup, holding a bag full of groceries. 

“H - Hiccup, what are you doing here?” Astrid asked nervously. 

“Well I know you said you were doing okay and didn’t need anything – but I came to offer my services as a master chef and cook you dinner. You can tell me to leave though... I won't be offended.” He looked as nervous as she was feeling, standing awkwardly on her doorstep with the bag in one hand, his car keys in the other. 

“Oh ah, that’s so nice, but you didn’t have to do that,” she said. Hiccup just shrugged and smiled at her. “But how could I turn an offer like that down. She moved aside so that he could enter, taking the bag so he could remove his shoes. Panic was rushing through her, making it hard to form thoughts now that he was there. “So um, what did you bring?” 

“Just some stuff to make Teriyaki chicken with garlic rice and japanese mayo,” he replied cheerfully. 

“Sounds delicious,” Astrid said, while leading him into the kitchen to unload the groceries. “You honestly didn’t need to do this though.” 

“I know, I just thought you might need a bit of pampering since you weren't feeling well.” Hiccup gave her a smile, almost making her melt on the spot. No one had ever done anything like this for her before. Not even Jack. 

“I appreciate it,” Astrid said. He lifted his gaze to meet hers and for a moment they just stood there, looking into each other's eyes – it was as if a magnet was trying to pull them together. Shaking her head, Astrid cast her eyes away and continued with the task of unloading the groceries. “Is there anything I can do to help? I would feel kind of useless just standing here watching you do all the work especially in my own kitchen.” 

“Did you want to cut the green vegetables?” Hiccup asked. Astrid nodded, taking a knife out of the drawer and placing the asian greens and broccoli on the chopping board. She was literally shaking from nervousness, and it was making it hard for her to focus. 

_ Tell him, just come out with it,  _ she told herself while peeking over to watch him cutting the chicken on the other chopping board. His eyebrows were furrowed in concentration as he expertly diced the meat into perfect, even sized strips. No, now was not the best time. But then she wondered if there would ever be a good time. 

Astrid was so distracted with her thoughts that she didn’t notice her mistake until it was too late. “OW!” she yelped, leaping back to hold her finger that was now scarlet with the blood seeping from a small cut. Hiccup whirled around in alarm as she rushed to the sink, holding her hand over it as the blood began to drip. 

“Oh shit, do you have any bandaids?” he asked in a shaky voice. It was like the sight of blood made him nauseous. 

“In the top drawer of the bathroom cabinet,” Astrid said without thinking. Hiccup immediately left in search of a bandaid, leaving her standing at the sink trying to stem the flow of blood. It was luckily only a shallow cut, meaning that a bandaid would likely solve the problem until it healed. So she waited for Hiccup to bring one back, grabbing a paper towel to wrap around the finger and adding pressure to it. He returned moments later, his face a ghostly white as he came back into the kitchen holding something in each hand. One held the band aid, the other the positive pregnancy test. Astrid’s eyes widened in horror when she saw it, her eyes snapping up to meet his. That had not been how she wanted him to find out. 

Time seemed to freeze at that moment, the only sign of movement being the rising of Hiccup’s chest and the blood that was quickly spreading through the paper towel even further. Astrid opened and shut her mouth, desperately trying to think of something to say, but it was as if she’d lost her voice. 

“Astrid – is this what I think it is?” Hiccup looked terrified as he held up the test, waiting for her answer, and all she could give him was a nod in confirmation. Silence ensued, making her feel even more nervous, especially when he turned the test over to look at the double lines, with an unreadable expression before glancing back up at her. “Is it...mine?” 

Again, Astrid nodded to answer his question. Her eyes began to burn with tears and she found it hard to swallow as she waited for him to respond, 

“Were you going to tell me, or?” 

Finally Astrid managed to form words to respond. “I was going to tell you, I just didn’t know how. And I only just found out today – I swear.” 

Hiccup ran a hand through his hair, exhaling loudly as he absorbed the news. “So I guess that was the real reason why you were feeling sick then?” 

“Yeah,” Astrid responded quietly. “A work mate sort of told me to take a test because I couldn't stomach drinking milk earlier, and apparently her sister was the same when she was pregnant. Plus I had other symptoms, but I had no idea and thought they were just intense premenstrual symptoms.” 

Hiccup nodded, looking somewhat conflicted on what to say. It made Astrid feel even more anxious. She wondered if he was angry with her, or perhaps even blamed her for this happening. 

“I’m sorry,” Astrid murmured quietly. Her voice was merely a whisper but even then, Hiccup still heard, his face instantly softening. 

“Hey – you don’t need to apologise, it’s not your fault,” he said gently. “I just need a moment to absorb it all. I mean it is a bit unexpected because the thing between us was just a one night stand, and even though the condom broke, you were on the pill so I thought we would be safe.” 

“Yeah, I thought so as well, but apparently the doctor said the pill can become less effective if you’ve been sick and well, I had an ear infection the week before we met which sort of messed up my tummy a bit,” Astrid replied. She glanced down at the bloodied paper towel and removed it slightly to see more blood flowing from the cut. “Um, I might need that bandaid now.”

“Shit sorry.” Hiccup rushed forwards, placing the test down on the table to quickly undo the wrapper around the bandaid. He reached out for her hand and she held it out, skin prickling under his touch when he held it carefully to wrap the bandaid around the finger with the cut. Once it was on, he released her hand, stepping back slightly and clearing his throat. “So ah, how about we finish preparing this dinner and then talk about...this?” He gestured to her stomach with his typical jerky arm movements that almost made her snort with amusement. 

“Okay – sounds good,” Astrid said and followed him back into the kitchen. 

“I think I’ll just do the chopping from now on though, you can do the rice instead.” 

Astrid rolled her eyes. “I only chopped my finger because I was so distracted with deciding how I should tell you.” 

“I guess that’s understandable,” Hiccup replied. He had his back turned, but Astrid could tell he was feeling a bit overwhelmed with the revelation. Knowing this, she decided to turn on the radio to play some music, hoping it would make it slightly less awkward until they could work things out. 

Once dinner was prepared, she and Hiccup sat at the table, eating the delicious meal. It was obvious that they were both anticipating the conversation they needed to have, and it seemed that a silent agreement was made to wait until after dinner. Astrid felt relieved about this, mainly because her stomach was starting to feel uneasy, though she didn’t know if it was from the nerves or the nausea that was apparently common in pregnancy. 

After they’d eaten, Astrid took the plates back to the kitchen sink and went to join Hiccup on the couch where he sat stiffly. She sat down, clasping her hands together and waited for him to say something, not wanting to be the first to initiate the conversation. Thankfully, he did speak up first.

“Are you...going to keep it?” 

The question hung heavy in the air as he looked at her expectantly. She sighed, rubbing her temples to try and clear some stress so that her mind could focus on an answer. 

“Honestly – I don’t know if I can afford it, I – “

“ – Wait a second, you know that you wouldn’t be doing all of this alone if you did decide to keep it, right?” Hiccup interrupted with a look of surprise.

“Oh, well ah, I just didn’t want you to think that I was expecting you to be, because well, it was a one night stand.” 

Hiccup’s eyebrows raised. “Just because it was a one night stand – a very good one if I might add – that doesn't mean that I don’t want anything to do with this baby. If you did decide to keep it, then I want to be a part of their life.”

Astrid felt a sense of relief with his words, if he was willing to help, then maybe she could keep the baby. “So – we would raise it together? As what?” she asked carefully. 

Hiccup looked thoughtful for a moment. “As friends, and co-parents, I guess.” 

A feeling of disappointment washed over Astrid, though she was not sure why. It was better than she’d hoped for, after all. 

“Do you think that would work?” she questioned. “We barely know each other.”

Hiccup shrugged and nodded. “I don’t see why not. As long as we keep the lines of communication open, I think we will be okay. And we might not know each other that well, apart from the obvious, but I’m sure that would change very quickly.” 

Astrid bit her lip for a moment as her mind began to race with the possibilities. “Then I guess I will definitely think about keeping it, but I would like a few days to think about it first. I get the results of the blood test tomorrow and then I have to go back in a few days to redo it so they can see if the hormone levels have gone up. By then, I think I would have made a decision. And until then, I would rather not tell anyone. Eret already knows, but that is because he walked in and found me with the test.” 

Hiccup looked surprised upon hearing that Eret already knew, but then shook his head to clear whatever was going through his mind. “Okay,” he said. “Did you want me to go with you? For the second test I mean.”

Astrid considered his offer, wondering if it would be a good idea and then decided why not, if she did end up keeping this baby then it would be important to involve him with these things. “Sure, I’ll text or ring you with the results and when I am going back in. I also have a scan in two weeks as well.” 

Hiccup’s face instantly brightened. “Really? I would love to come to that as well – if that was okay with you.” 

“Of course,” Astrid replied. “And I am really sorry you found out that way, but in a way I am kind of glad as well, because I was seriously struggling on how to tell you.”

Hiccup chuckled awkwardly. “Yeah...was a bit of a shock to open up the drawer and see that just lying there on top of everything.” 

Astrid laughed lightly, feeling awkward herself as they continued to gaze at one another. 

“So ah, I better head off now. But if you need anything, just text. I’m happy to come whenever, even if it’s the middle of the night.” 

“You might regret that,” Astrid told him as they walked towards the front door. ‘But thank you for everything, for dinner and for just being so supportive of everything, all things considering.” 

“No problem,” Hiccup assured her. They stood facing each other awkwardly before Hiccup leaned in to give her a one armed hug. “I guess our friendship just got a little crazier.” 

Astrid snorted. “Yeah, I guess so.” 

They said their goodbyes and Astrid closed the door, her anxiety feeling slightly lighter now that Hiccup knew and better yet, he was willing to support her if she did decide to keep it. The only downside was that the feelings she had for him were likely to grow the more she was with him, instead of fade like she’d hoped. She sighed, and walked back over to the couch, feeling the anxiety creep back up again on how things were going to end up. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still have the cream, coloured knitted cardigan that I was gifted at my very first appointment. Such a sweet gesture and I thought it would fit nicely here. So, I hope you all liked this chapter. It was rather quick for Hiccup to find out wasn't it. I considered making Astrid wait for a while to tell him, but fate decided to play games there. Now it is time for Astrid to consider her options (as any woman in her position would do!), though I'm sure it is pretty obvious what the choice will be.


End file.
